With Dhaka Metro, Bangladesh becomes third country to have metro rail system in South Asia

Dhaka, Bangladesh (Metro Rail Today): With the aims to ease commuting in the capital Dhaka, one of the most congested cities in the world, Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina along with her sister Sheikh Rehana has inaugurated country's first metro rail system to the public on 28th December 2022.

Bangladesh's Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, newly appointed Japanese Ambassador to Bangladesh Iwama Kiminori and Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Mayor Atiqul Islam were among the dignitaries present on the occasion.

Prime Minister hailed the opening of the metro rail as a crowning achievement along with the Padma setu inaugurated a few months back. She said the metro rail heralds the beginning of a new age in Bangladesh with high-speed trains running on electricity which is environmentally safe. She reiterated her commitment to make Bangladesh a developed country by 2041.

The first phase of 21.26 km proposed Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Line 6 spreading 11.73 km has been opened for public from today. This stretch will connect Uttara North to Agargaon with 9 elevated metro stations at Uttara North, Uttara Center, Uttara South, Pallabi, Mirpur-11, Mirpur-10, Kazipara, Shewrapara and Agargaon.

Initially, the train will run daily for 4 hours from 8 a.m. to 12 noon between Uttara and Agargaon stations without any stoppage. In the beginning, 10 sets of trains with six coaches each will run from Uttara to Agargaon. The metro rail will carry 60 thousand passengers per hour and 5 lakh passengers per day. The frequency of the trains will be 4 minutes.

Under the Phase 2, Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Line 6 will extend from Agargaon to Kamalapur with 8 elevated metro stations at Bijoy Sarani, Farmgate, Kawran Bazar, Shahbag, Dhaka University, Bangladesh Secretariat, Motijheel and Kamalapur. It is expected to be opened for operation in December 2023. The second phase's physical progress stands at 73.08 percent.

The contract for construction of the Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Line-6, costing US$2.8 billion, was signed by the Government of Bangladesh with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on 20th February 2013. Construction work commenced on 26th June 2016 with an inauguration ceremony presided over by the prime minister Sheikh Hasina. Civil engineering work was done by the consortium of Italian-Thai Development Public Company Ltd. and China's Sinohydro Corporation Ltd. Tokyo-based construction company developed the depot's land.

The project has been divided into eight packages viz. Package-1 (Depot area land development), Package-2 (Depot area completion), Package-3, Package-4 (Uttara North-Agaragon 11.73 km viaduct and 9 stations), Package-5 (Agaragon-Kawran Bazar 3.195 km viaduct and 3 stations construction work), Package-6 (Kawran Bazar-Motirjheel 4.922 km viaduct and 3 stations construction work), Package-7 (Electrical and mechanical system) and Package-8 (Rolling stock and depot equipment collection).

The Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) network in Dhaka is planned to be 129 kilometres out of which 61 km will be underground. The metro rail has been constructed by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) which has also provided a soft loan for the project. The construction work of Metro line 6 was started in 2016.

With the opening of 11.73 km stretch of Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Line-6, Bangladesh has been become third South Asian country to have metro rail system after India and Pakistan.