Construction of first ever subway to start in Jan

The construction work for the first ever underground metro rail in the country – Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Line 1 – will begin in January next year, said Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) on Wednesday.

This line will have two parts – Dhaka airport to Kamalapur and from Natun Bazar to Purbachal. Besides, construction of another line MRT-5 (northern route) would be inaugurated in July 2023. This will go from Savar’s Hemayetpur to Bhatara via Gabtoli, Mirpur and Gulshan.

“We are expecting that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the construction work of both the lines,” said MAN Siddique, managing director of DMTCL, while addressing the inauguration ceremony of MRT Line 6.

In October this year, the DMTCL has appointed consultant companies at a cost of Tk 1,517.24 crore to supervise the MRT Line-1.

Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is financing MRT Line-1, scheduled to be completed by 2026.

The project cost has been estimated at Tk 52,561.43 crore. The Bangladesh government will provide Tk 13,111 crore of the cost while Tk 39,450 crore will come from JICA.

According to the plan, trains will run on MRT Line-1 from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to Kamalapur in 24 minutes, including stops at 12 underground stations. Twenty-five trains will run at the speed of 90 kilometres per hour and carry eight lakh passengers daily.

According to the Revised Strategic Transport Plan, MRT Line-1 will be divided into Airport and Purbachal routes.

The Airport route will run from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to Kamalapur via the airport’s third terminal, Khilkhet, Jamuna Future Park, Natun Bazar, Badda, Hatirjheel, Rampura, Malibagh, and Rajarbagh.

The project’s underground part will cover 16.5 kilometres. The Natun Bazar station will be inter-connected to MRT Line-5.

The Purbachal section of MRT Line-1 will run from Natun Bazar to Purbachal terminal via Bashundhara, Jamuna Future Park, Police Officers Housing Society, Mastul, Purbachal Pashchim, Madhya Purbachal, and Purbachal Sector 7.

This 10km section will have nine stations, including Natun Bazar and Jamuna Future Park underground stations belonging to the Airport route. The Bashundhara to Purbachal section will be elevated and have seven stations.