[🇧🇩] City Buses, Metro Rail, Urban Transport & City Road Infra

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Ashulia Elevated Expressway, Current Status

 

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New Architectural showcases in Dhaka

 

[Saif]

Dhaka Elevated Expressway construction almost halted

The works of the Dhaka Elevated Expressway project have come to a near halt following altercations between the three foreign investment and shareholding companies implementing the project over ownership of shares...

www.newagebd.net

Dhaka Elevated Expressway construction almost halted
Shahin Akhter 13 May, 2024, 23:16

A file photo of Dhaka Elevated Expressway project. | — New Age photo

The works of the Dhaka Elevated Expressway project have come to a near halt following altercations between the three foreign investment and shareholding companies implementing the project over ownership of shares.

Currently, the Thailand-based Italian-Thai Development Public Company Limited owns 51 per cent share of the project, while China Shandong International Economic and Technical Co-operation Group (CSI) and Sinohydro Corporation Limited own 34 per cent and 15 per cent shares of the project respectively.

The Italian-Thai Development Public Company Limited filed an appeal at the Appellate Division on Monday after the High Court on Sunday dismissed their appeal for a status quo on the transfer of shares.

Earlier this year on January 28, the Italian-Thai company filed a case with the High Court challenging the demand of the two Chinese contractors for transfer of shares.

Elevated expressway project director AHM Shakhawat Akhtar told New Age on Monday that the Italian-Thai company did not pay an instalment of interest of the loan taken under this public-private-partnership project triggering this conflict.

'Because of the legal battle between the three shareholders the pace of the work is slow now,' he said, adding, 'but our work is ongoing at Hatirjheel and Moghbazar areas.'

On Monday afternoon, a visit at the project site at Moghbazar saw no work going on there.

In Hatirjheel area near the BFDC level crossing, some workers were seen working at the project site.

The 46.73-kilometre expressway project connects Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport with the Dhaka-Chattogram Highway at Kutubkhali, near Jatrabari.

The project was undertaken in 2011 to reduce traffic congestion in the capital and save time and money.

It was revised in 2013 due to alignment changes, and construction began in 2015 at an estimated cost of Tk 8,940 crore.

The First Dhaka Elevated Expressway Company Ltd, a joint venture of the Italian-Thai and two Chinese companies, is implementing the project under the supervision of the Bangladesh Bridge Authority.

The three companies signed loan agreements with the China Exim Bank and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China in March 2019.

Prime minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the Airport-Farmgate section of the expressway on September 2, 2023.

The exit ramp of the expressway's Karwan Bazar section, in front of the BFDC, opened to traffic on March 20 this year.

As of Monday, the project's overall progress was 75 per cent, said the project director.

Barrister Imtiaz Farooq, on behalf of the Italian-Thai Development Public Company Ltd, told New Age on Monday that they filed an appeal with the Appellate Division on Monday.

He also said that after hearing, the Appellate Division chamber judge referred the hearing of the appeal before the full bench on next Thursday.

The statement that his client has failed to pay dues of the loan in time is not true, he added.

Senior advocate barrister Mohammad Mehedi Hasan Chowdhury, on behalf of the China Shandong International Economic and Technical Co-operation Group, told New Age that according to the loan agreements with the China Exim Bank and Industrial and Commercial Bank of China the three companies were to pay back the loan in instalments on January 21 and July 21 every year.

In case of failure in paying instalments, if the two Chinese companies pay the loan instalments of the Italian-Thai company, they will get 50 per cent share of the Italian-Thai company as per the agreements, he said.

This year as the Italian-Thai company did not pay the instalment, the two Chinese companies cleared the payment, he mentioned.

With the High Court dismissing the Italian-Thai company's appeal on Sunday there is no obstacle in transferring the shares to the two Chinese companies, he added.

Major creditors, including Bangkok Bank, have agreed to inject fresh liquidity into the cash-strapped Italian-Thai company, to support its business operations, according to a report of Bangkok Post published on this April 18.

Dhaka Elevated Expressway project director said that this is an internal matter between the shareholders.

Replying to a question he said that they have targeted to complete the works of the expressway by December this year.​

 

[Saif]

Dhaka-Sylhet-Tamabil Highway: Crucial projects held back by land issues

The expansion work of the Dhaka-Sylhet highway has been severely hampered due to long delays in land acquisition and the moving of utility lines.

www.thedailystar.net

Dhaka-Sylhet-Tamabil Highway: Crucial projects held back by land issues

Photo: Sheikh Nasir

The expansion work of the Dhaka-Sylhet highway has been severely hampered due to long delays in land acquisition and the moving of utility lines.

The project authority has already hired contractors for all 13 packages but could not hand over the land, leading to the contractors claiming compensations and time extensions.

The Sylhet-Tamabil expansion project is about to face a similar fate, creating grounds for time and cost escalation.

The road expansion works are facing obstacles because a separate project launched five years ago to acquire land failed to hand over the land.

The two projects involve around Tk 20,500 crore.

Dhaka-Sylhet-Tamabil road corridor is a part of the Asian Highway-1, which plans to link India's Meghalaya and West Bengal to Bangladesh through Tamabil-Sylhet-Kanchpur-Dhaka-Jashore-Benapole.

Their expansion works are facing obstacles because a separate project launched five years ago to acquire land failed to hand over the land.

Roads and Highways Department sources said apart from land acquisition being a complex and sensitive process, a lack of sincerity among a section of officials at the local administration was allegedly responsible for the delays.

Road Transport and Highways Division's Secretary ABM Amin Ullah Nuri on Thursday held a meeting to untangle the mess.

The meeting, attended by officials of seven district administrations, among others, set different deadlines for completing their work, meeting sources said.

Usually, land acquisition and the moving of utility lines and pipes are part of the infrastructure protect.

But RHD in September 2018 took up the separate project, involving Tk 3,586.04 crore, to acquire land and move the utility services by December 2020, to make room for Dhaka-Sylhet-Tamabil road expansion.

The aim was to complete the legwork ahead as these issues often hold up road expansion work. The government wanted the road expanded as soon as the expansion projects were approved.

Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec) in September 2020 approved the project for turning 56.16km of the Sylhet-Tamabil Highway into four lanes, with service lanes of both sides. The project's deadline is June 2025.

In February 2021, Ecnec approved the Tk 16,918.59 crore Dhaka-Sylhet expansion project to turn the 209km road from Narayanganj's Kanchpur to Sylhet into four lanes, with service lines on both sides. The project's deadline is December 2026.

While the expansion projects moved forward, the land acquisition project was revised twice, taking the cost to Tk 7,975.31 crore and the deadline to December 2025.

Project sources said 66 land acquisition (LA) proposals were submitted to acquire 829.83 acres of land in seven districts for the Dhaka-Sylhet highway expansion.

But only the documents of around 60 acres of land under four LA proposals have so far been handed over to the project authorities, officials said.

The authorities could not take control of the land as the local administrations are yet to compensate the land owners, they said.

As this is an ADB-funded project, the project authorities would not be able to use the land unless owners receive full compensation, the sources said, adding that there were structures on the land as well.

AK Mohammad Fazlul Karim, project director of Dhaka-Sylhet highway expansion, said they have hired contractors for all 13 packages.

As per the conditions, they were supposed to handover the land to contractors within 270 days of signing of the contracts, he said.

Four of the contractors have already sought financial compensation for their unused equipment and manpower; and asked for deadline extensions, he told The Daily Star over phone.

Another project official, seeking anonymity, said, "The delay is making it very difficult to complete the project within the deadline. A deadline extension will ultimately increase cost."

Replying to a question, the official said their contractors were now working on a limited scale on the land under the RHD's possession.

Meanwhile, 30 LA proposals were submitted to acquire 335.77 acres of land in Sylhet district for the Sylhet-Tamabil road expansion.

No land was handed over to the project authorities, officials said.

Contacted, Project Director Abu Sayeed Md Nazmul Huda said they would implement the project under four packages.

They have already hired a China-Bangladesh joint venture firm for one package and the proposals to hire contractors, for two other packages, will soon be sent to the cabinet committee on government purchase, he said.

He added that the joint venture firm already mobilised their equipment and manpower, and will start work within a week on the land under the RHD's possession.

"The delay in land acquisition will ultimately cause a delay in implementation," he told The Daily Star yesterday.

An RHD official, not involved in these projects, said it might take another year or two for the land acquisition to finish. "But over two years is unacceptable. So, there's definitely lack of sincerity among some local administration officials."

He said there should have been clear deadlines to complete the land acquisition work for the local administration to comply with.

Contacted, land acquisition Project Director Fazle Rabbe, said land acquisition is a complicated process and sensitive matter.

"We have to follow all relevant laws and procedures so that no one is deprived," Fazle, also an additional chief engineer (Sylhet zone) of the RHD, told The Daily Star yesterday.

Replying to question, he said, "Nobody is causing delays intentionally. There is no negligence from any side .... We're all trying our best."​

 

[Saif]

Wait for Ctg expressway nearing end

The elevated expressway in Chattogram, the first one in the port city, would be opened to traffic soon, said project officials.

www.thedailystar.net

Wait for Ctg expressway nearing end

A drone shot of the almost finished 16.5km elevated expressway in Chattogram. The photo was taken in the port city's Lalkhan Bazar area recently. Photo: Collected

The elevated expressway in Chattogram, the first one in the port city, would be opened to traffic soon, said project officials.

"We have completed all other works except for installation of electric poles, lights, and CCTV cameras. We will also open a ramp alongside the main expressway," Mahfuzur Rahman, director of the project and executive engineer of Chattogram Development Authority (CDA), told The Daily Star on May 12.

The project was initiated to ease the port city's perennial traffic congestion in 2017.

The authorities concerned have already finalised the toll rates of vehicles. Three-wheelers and motorcycles will not be allowed on the expressway.

The city dwellers now depend on only one thoroughfare, resulting in acute gridlocks at places. "It discourages foreign buyers and investors from visiting here," said traders.

The 16.5km expressway would speed up transportation of goods and commuters, which will save time and reduce costs.

CDA's Chief Engineer Kazi Hasan Bin Shams said the expressway would reduce travel time between Patenga and Tigerpass.

"It takes around two hours to travel between the two places. But the expressway will end our sufferings as it will take 15 to 20 minutes," he added.

The CDA engineer said the expressway will also facilitate travel to the southern part of the district through Bangabandhu Tunnel.

During a recent visit to the expressway's Lalkhan Bazar point, this correspondent found that installation of lights was in progress and road signs were being installed.

City planners earlier said this new route would help boost business activities in the country's commercial city.

Chittagong Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Omar Hazzaz termed the expressway an asset for the city dwellers as well as business community since it would add a new dimension to the port city's communication system.

The expressway will encourage businesses to invest more in the port city as road connectivity would become more efficient, he added.

In July 2017, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (Ecnec) approved the Chattogram Elevated Expressway project. The original cost of the project was Tk 3,250 crore and it was scheduled to be completed in June 2020.

But the government had to extend the deadline as the CDA failed to implement the project within the stipulated time.

At present, the cost of the project is Tk 4,298.95 crore, and the deadline has been moved to June this year, after two extensions.

The elevated expressway, a fully government-funded project, will be of four lanes.

It will have 14 ramps at nine points from Lalkhan Bazar to Patenga. The ramps will facilitate entry and exit at GEC, Tigerpass, Agrabad, Fakirhat, Nimtala Biswa Road, Customs area, CEPZ, Karnaphuli EPZ, and Cement crossing areas.

The expressway has been named after former city mayor and freedom fighter ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury.​

 

[Bilal9]

Dhaka Madani Avenue (Sylhet Highway connector) construction update

 

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[Saif]

Don’t turn metro rail into a status symbol

Imposing VAT on metro fares and taking the service further away from the poor, it risks becoming more like a status vehicle—which rich commuters already have plenty of.

www.thedailystar.net

VAT on metro fare
Don't turn metro rail into a status symbol

PHOTO: Monorom Polok

Recently, there has been a lot of discussion about the proposed imposition of a 15 percent VAT on the Dhaka metro rail service. The metro train ticket is currently VAT-exempt, a facility that will expire on June 30.

The National Board of Revenue is unwilling to extend the exemption as part of efforts to generate revenue for funding development projects aimed at making Bangladesh a developed nation by 2041. However, on Sunday, the road transport and bridges minister, Obaidul Quader, said that he had requested the prime minister to reconsider NBR's decision.

The minimum fare for the metro rail is Tk 20, while the per-kilometre fare is set at Tk 5. On the other hand, the per-kilometre fare in a city bus is set at Tk 2.42 and the minimum fare at Tk 10. So, on the surface, the metro fare may not seem much. But for many people from lower-income backgrounds, the difference between the bus and metro rail fares is significant enough to deter them from using the rail service. This difference further adds up when you cover the whole distance between Uttara and Motijheel. For the one-fifth of the population living below the poverty line, it means that they cannot use the service even at its current fare despite its comfort and fast commute times.​

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.

 

[Bilal9]

2nd Road Link being built over Turag River from Uttara to Tongi.

 

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Current Status of 48 KM Gazipur to NarayanGanj Dhaka-Bypass Expressway

 

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Bogra City portion of Dhaka-Elenga-Rangpur 6 lane highway

 

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Current status of Dhaka's Newest DOHS and suburb Jolshiri - which is also the country's latest smart city project.

 

[Bilal9]

Dhaka Metro MRT Line 1 is the 2nd Metro Line to be built after the first - MRT Line 6. Depot construction for MRT-1 is proceeding apace.

 

[Saif]

2 MRT lines may miss deadline

The metro rail authorities are likely to miss the 2030 deadline for completing two of the six planned metro lines in Dhaka as they have not yet started carrying out feasibility studies for the two lines.

www.thedailystar.net

2 MRT lines may miss deadline
Feasibility studies for MRT-2 and 4 yet to start

The metro rail authorities are likely to miss the 2030 deadline for completing two of the six planned metro lines in Dhaka as they have not yet started carrying out feasibility studies for the two lines.

With the consultants already hired, the authorities are set to start conducting the feasibility study for Mass Rapid Transit Line-4. But the progress of the MRT Line-2 project is disappointing as the financier for the feasibility study has not yet been found, let alone hiring a consultant for the work, officials concerned said.

Once the feasibility studies are done and financiers are found, the authorities will have to go through a long process -- preparing a project proposal, having it approved, acquiring land, preparing a detailed design, and floating tenders to hire contractors, they said.

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.​

 

[Saif]

Dhaka’s transport turmoil

Dhaka is the world's rickshaw capital

www.thedailystar.net

Dhaka's transport turmoil

The manoeuvring and manipulation of the public transport system remains a perennial source of pain and suffering for commuters and non-commuters alike. PHOTO: PRABIR DAS

Dhaka is the world's rickshaw capital. It is also arguably the mobile museum of broken buses. For a city that aspires to be smart, paddle rickshaws and rickety buses past their recyclable years seem to be an anathema. Yet, they reign in scandalous glory. To exacerbate the situation, the city has incorporated indigenous innovations to power the paddle rickshaws and disregarded the laws pertaining to dilapidated buses. The manoeuvring and manipulation of the public transport system remains a perennial source of pain and suffering for commuters and non-commuters alike.

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.​

 

[Bilal9]

Modern Electric Rickshaws taking over on side streets in larger towns in Bangladesh

 

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Speed guns used by Metro Police on Purbachal Expressway

 

[Bilal9]

Bus Rapid Transit (BRT)Line 3 construction update 5/26/2024. BRT runs from Dhaka Int'l Airport to Gazipur North of Dhaka. They are planning to inaugurate the service with Electric buses but no use raising our hopes until we see this for real.

 

[Saif]

Bangabandhu tunnel: Expenditure much higher than income

According to the bridge division, over 4,500 vehicles have used the tunnel every day on average so far. It was predicted that at least four times that number of vehicles would use the tunnel. Daily average income from the toll of the tunnel is Tk 11,80,000 taka. On the other hand, the average...

en.prothomalo.com

Bangabandhu tunnel: Expenditure much higher than income
Anwar Hossain & Sujan GhoseDhaka and Chattogram
Published: 28 May 2024, 08: 44

Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel in ChattogramFile photo

The tunnel built under the Karnaphuli River in Chattogram is not getting as much traffic as expected yet resulting in less than expected toll collection. As of now, the revenue generated from the tunnel is much less than maintenance costs and toll collection.

According to the bridge division, over 4,500 vehicles have used the tunnel every day on average so far. It was predicted that at least four times that number of vehicles would use the tunnel. Daily average income from the toll of the tunnel is Tk 11,80,000 taka. On the other hand, the average daily expenditure for collection and maintenance of this toll is Tk 3.75 million.

The main length of the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel built under the Karnaphuli river is 3.32 km. It is the first under-river tunnel in the country. The tunnel was built with Chinese loans and Bangladesh government funding.

Sources from Bangladesh Bridges Authority said paying the installments of loan taken from China would start from this year. As the income is less than expected, maintenance cost would have to be paid from income generated from other bridges. As a result, the government will have to pay a subsidy from the revenue sector to pay the loan.

The tunnel has eased the commute as crossing the road now takes three to three and half minutes. However, economists , businessmen and bridges authority said the roads on the one side of the tunnel were not widened. The Chittagong Development Authority (CDA) has not taken much initiative to expand the city on the other side of Karnaphuli river. There should be industrialization centering the tunnel. The use of the tunnel could be increased once these initiatives are taken.

Bridges division's secretary Md Monjur Hossain told Prothom Alo that work to connect Cox's Bazar and Matarbari with the tunnel is going on. The use of the tunnel and income would increase if it can be connected with Cox's Bazar and Matarbari roads.

About the repayment of the installment of the Chinese loan, he said the matter is now under the finance ministry.

To read the rest of the news, please click on the link above.​

 

[Bilal9]

Feasibility study for MRT Line-4 begins in June
The metro rail authority will start the feasibility study for Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Line-4 next month, which is supposed to link Dhaka with Narayanganj's Madanpur.
The consultants hired for the job have reached Dhaka and held a meeting with the metro railway authorities on Monday.
"They [consultants] will first visit the project area and will mobilise their manpower to start the study next month," MAN Siddique, managing director of Dhaka Mass Transit Company Ltd (DMTCL), told The Daily Star on Monday.

He said a consortium of four South Korean companies will carry out the feasibility study and prepare a basic design for the project. Korea will finance the work.

The consortium is supposed to complete the work within one and a half years, he said, adding that they will prepare the project's basic design to get its estimated cost.

The physical works on MRT Line-1 and MRT Line-5 (northern route) started last year, while a project proposal for MRT Line-5 (southern route) is now pending with the Planning Commission for approval.

MRT Line 4 and 2 are lagging behind in terms of preparation and may miss the deadline to complete the lines within 2030, officials said.
Although feasibility of MRT Line-4 is going to start, the financier for the feasibility study of MRT Line-2 has not yet been found, let alone hiring a consultant for the work, they added.

Once the feasibility studies are done and financiers are found, the authorities will have to go through a long process -- preparing a project proposal, having it approved, acquiring land, preparing a detailed design, and floating tenders to hire contractors, they said.

All these preparatory works usually take three to four years, which is why the authorities may not be able to meet the deadline for these projects, officials feared.

Asked whether they will be able to complete MRT Lines 2 and 4 within the stipulated time, Siddique said, "Let us start the work first, and then we will figure out if we can meet the deadline."

As per the preliminary plan, MRT Line-4 is supposed to be built from Kamalapur to Narayanganj underground.

However, metro rail authorities later changed the plan as Bangladesh Railway is expanding the existing lines from Dhaka to Narayanganj.

Its new 16km route will stretch from Dhaka to Narayanganj's Madanpur via Signboard. In May last year, the government signed a MoU with South Korea to finance the project.

As per the pre-feasibility study, the route will have both underground and elevated sections. The possible alignment would be Kamalapur, Sayedabad, Jatrabari, Shanir Akhra, Signboard, Chittagong Road, Kanchapur and Madanpur.