A roughly 13-kilometre traffic jam formed on the Dhaka-bound lane of the Dhaka-Chattogram highway in Gajaria, Munshiganj, causing severe hardship for passengers and transport workers. The congestion began on Friday afternoon, intensified overnight and had spread towards Daudkandi, Gauripur and Cumilla by Saturday morning, highway police said.

Authorities said traffic was restricted to one lane because repair and concrete work was underway on the Dhaka-bound lane of the Ashariarchar bridge in Sonargaon, Narayanganj. The resulting pressure of extra vehicles on a single lane gradually lengthened the queue. Buses, trucks, covered vans, goods vehicles and private cars remained stranded for hours in areas including Bhoberchar and Bhaterchar.

A truck driver said the journey from Gauripur to Bhaterchar took about eight and a half hours after he was stuck from 10pm Friday. An executive engineer said work began at 11am Friday and ended at 9:30pm, but the lane remained closed while concrete dried. It was scheduled to reopen at 9am Saturday.