Home ›› 04 Feb 2023 ›› Editorial
Dhaka alone provides more than one third of the whole nation's output and the ratio will keep on rising since the share of the service sector in GDP is now 51.3 per cent (December, 2022). It is inevitable for the service sector's share in GDP to keep on expanding with the pace of development, and thus Dhaka's importance will increase even further day by day no matter the kind of decentralisation plan our government has in mind.
An underground metro train system for Dhaka deserves to be a premier mega project for the next phase of development after the Padma Bridge. Nothing else can be more crucial than to bring mobility to this difficult city—one of the worst on various counts.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Thursday inaugurated the construction work of the country’s first-ever underground metro rail within a month after opening the metro rail from Uttara’s Diabari to Agargaon.
The Business Post lauds this mega initiative for the country. We believe that the project will add another feather to the country’s cap.
The prime minister unveiled the inaugural plaque of the construction work of the Mass Rapid Transit Line-1 at sector 4 at Purbachal of Pitalganj in Rupganj of Narayanganj district and addressed a civic rally there.
Dhaka almost never sleeps, not only for activity, but also for inactivity and noise, for being stuck in never-ending traffic gridlock; one would consider oneself lucky if he gets back home by ten o’clock after which the whole city is taken over by a brigade of trucks, choking all the roads.
The "melodious" horns of outdated buses and trucks keep us awake the whole night, worsening noise pollution. Once, the subway is built, there would be no need worry too much about over-ground traffic. It would be possible to send half of Dhaka's commuters underground. The government however will construct the MRT Line-1 having both underground and elevated facilities from airport to Kamalapur and Purbachal to Natun Bazar with an estimated cost of Tk 52,561.43 crore by 2026.
A total of six metro rail routes will be inaugurated in the capital city Dhaka by 2030.
According to the project details, the MRT Line-1 will have two parts - a 19.872km part from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to Kamalapur — Airport route — which will be underground with 12 stations and an around 11.37km elevated line from Natun Bazar to Purbachal route— having seven stations, while Natun Bazar and Nadda stations will be underground as part of the airport route.
Bangladesh government and the development partner agency Japan International Cooperation will bear expenses of Tk 52,561.43 crore for construction work of the MRT Line-1, of which JICA will provide Tk 39,450.32 crore as project assistance and Bangladesh government will give Tk 13,111.11 crore.
A Japanese firm-led consortium will oversee the construction of the Airport-Kamalapur-Purbachal metro line. According to the project details, the MRT Line-1 will take 24 minutes and 30 seconds to travel from Airport to Kamalapur, with breaks at 12 underground stations and 20 minutes and 35 seconds to travel from Natun Bazar to Purbachal with breaks at seven stations.
Passengers will be able to reach Purbachal from Kamalapur with an interchange in Natun Bazar station within only 40 minutes with breaks at 16 stations. After the launch of MRT Line 1, eight lakh passengers will be able to travel through the route every day.
So, with the inauguration of the first-ever underground metro rail construction work, Bangladesh is going to enter the most expected underground transport system. No arguing that we need a robust urban transport system. Subway, underground rail, elevated expressway and other efficient modes of transportation are of paramount importance for city life, daily life and for frequent commuters. But the cost for a modern transport system must be rational and effective.
