Home ›› 28 Dec 2022 ›› Front
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is set to inaugurate the Uttara-Agargaon section of Dhaka Metro Rail – the country’s first ever electricity-powered train service – today, and a day later, commuters will be able experience the journey they have been eagerly waiting for.
She will inaugurate this landmark service at a ceremony in Uttara-15, go to the Uttara North Station, purchase a MRT Pass as the first commuter, and board the train with guests to head towards the Agargaon Station.
Mariam Afiza – a female operator – will take the train on its maiden journey. This new mode of transportation will be available to the city dwellers on Thursday from 8am.
It will be a whole new experience for the commuters of Uttara-Agargaon route as it would take them only ten minutes and cost Tk 60 a ticket. Commuters usually spend hours to ply this route, tackling gridlock and sometimes the unavailability of buses or other modes of transportation.
After passenger services begin Thursday, trains will initially travel directly from Uttara North to Agargaon Station every ten minutes from 8am to 12pm. Four trains will be in service for now, but the number will go up later, Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) officials say.
What’s the itinerary?
All nine stations will be functional on the 11.73-kilometre route within March 26 next year, while the waiting time between two available trains will be decreased gradually.
According to the DMTCL, around 2,000 distinguished guests of different professions, including senior government officials, politicians and diplomats, will be present at the inaugural ceremony. The premier will unveil plaques and complete some formalities.
From there, she will go to the Uttara Metrorail Station, take a tour at the Concourse Level and then collect a MRT Pass from the Ticket Office Machine (TOM).
At the platform, Sheikh Hasina will wave a green flag to inaugurate the maiden journey of Metrorail. That green flag will be preserved with her signature. Around 2pm, Sheikh Hasina will cut a ribbon and board the train.
She will interact with around 200 guests on board the train.
‘Agargaon-Motijheel section by 2023’
Speaking at a press conference at the Agargaon Station yesterday, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said, “The government will inaugurate the Agargaon-Motijheel section by December next year.
“By 2025, the trains will be operated all the way to Kamalapur. A train will take only 38 minutes to reach Motijheel from Uttara. By then, we will be able to carry 60,000 passengers per hour and five lakhs per day.”
Responding to a query about Tk 20 minimum fare being costlier compared to other countries, DMTCL Managing Director MAN Siddique said, “This fare has been fixed in a bid to meet the demands of time.
“Countries that have low metro rail fares had built these services long ago. Metrorail cannot be made profitable only by selling tickets, so we will build station plazas to boost our revenue.”
He continued, “We are not inaugurating the Metro Rail services in a hurry. All the work on this section has been concluded. We are initially running two stations so that the city dwellers can become familiar with the service.
“We will launch all nine stations in this section after three months. It is an international method to launch such a service.”
There is no half fare for students as the fare has already been set 33 per cent to 35 per cent less than the operating costs. Apart from this, there is a 10 per cent discount for those who will travel by buying a permanent card.
“Freedom fighters can travel for free. There is a 30 per cent discount for persons with disabilities,” Siddique told reporters.
Commuters must purchase a ticket to board the metro. They can get on board using a single journey ticket or MRT Pass (permanent card). Single journey tickets are available at the station.
However, the MRT passes must be collected by registering on the DMTCL site or app by providing some information, including an applicant’s NID card number.
If a commuter travels more than what they paid for, they will need to pay 10 times more as penalty, or serve a maximum of six months jail sentence.
The DMTCL managing director had recently said the company had prepared ten trains for regular operations, while two will be kept on standby as backup.
He added, “On straight tracks, we will be able to travel at 100 kilometres per hour and on bends, the top speed will be reduced. In the future, we will introduce a system allowing passengers to top up MRT passes using mobile financial service (MFS).
“The MFS providers have shown interest in providing this service.”
Insiders say the telecom companies have already approached metro rail authorities with proposals to set up towers near the stations to ensure better network and internet services for the commuters.
Once the MRT Line-6 becomes fully operational, city dwellers will have to pay Tk 100 to travel from Uttara to Motijheel as per kilometre fare has been fixed at Tk 5.
From Uttara to Agargaon, commuters will pay Tk 60. From Uttara North to Uttara centre and South they will need to pay Tk 20, which is the minimum fare.
From the first station (Uttara North), the fares for Pallabi and Mirpur-11 stations are Tk 30, Mirpur-10 and Kazipara Station Tk 40 and Shewrapara Station Tk 50.
After a passenger reaches a station, he can take the stairs, escalator and lift to go to the concourse hall on the floor where they can purchase tickets. The rail tracks and platforms will be on the second floor, and only ticket holders are allowed there.
