Dhaka joins the metro club as Bangladesh's rail revolution rolls on

Metro rail is expected to bring a huge respite to commuters in Dhaka, one of the most crowded cities in the world

When fortune favours Mozammel Hossain, it takes him around two hours to reach his office at Uttara’s House Building from his residence at Agargaon in the morning. He spends another two hours on the way back in the evening. On the days he has no luck, which happens quite often, his time on the road stretches beyond four hours.

And the construction of Dhaka Metro Rail made things worse for Mozammel in the past few years.

His days of miseries on the road are ending.

To offer people like Mozammel a huge respite from severe traffic congestion, the government is set to thrust Bangladesh into a new chapter of urban transport, a new experience for Dhaka commuters.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the first-ever electric public transport in Dhaka on Wednesday. And she will be the first to ride it.

Travellers and commuters like Mozammel will be able to take metro trains from the next day. A metro train is expected to take 20 minutes to reach Uttara’s Diabari from Agargaon, meaning Mozammel will be able to save at least three hours a day.

More than 50 countries across the world provide metro rail services. China alone has 46 metro systems, while the US and India have 15 each. Now Bangladesh is going to join the metro club.

Now I won’t be reaching the office with a dishevelled look; or returning home in a grumpy mood. I’ll be able to spend more time with my family. This is something we can’t buy with money.

Mozammel Hossain, a resident of Agargaon whose office is in Uttara

Dr Shamsul Hoque, professor of civil engineering at the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology, has no doubt that the metro rail will offer a new experience to people to reach destinations safely and on time.

“For people of Dhaka and other parts of Bangladesh, public transport means nothing but a sector with complete anarchy. This can’t be defined at all. Under the circumstances, the metro rail will be a disciplined transport system that will also be an inclusive one. So, the metro rail will define the transport sector in a new way and people will enjoy it thoroughly. There’s no alternative to metro rail for travelling fast,” he said.

The expert recommended charging a reasonable fare to ensure passengers get used to riding the metro rail.

• The entire 21.16km long route from Uttara to Kamalapur is being built at Tk 334.71 billion, funded by Japan

• The government is initially opening the 11.73km Uttara-Agargaon section with nine stations. After the full opening, expected in December 2023, people will travel from Uttara to Motijheel in 40 minutes.

• The project to build the metro rail from Uttara to Kamalapur is called Line 6. The government plans to connect different parts of Dhaka with six metro rail routes. One of them will be an underground railway.

• As promised by Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, the severe traffic congestion in Dhaka will be addressed to a large extent by 2030 when the full metro rail plan is implemented.

• Line 6 will be capable of carrying 60,000 passengers an hour and 500,000 passengers in a day when it starts running at full capacity, according to the Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Company Limited, operator of the metro rail.

• On each trip, a metro train with six coaches can carry a maximum of 2,308 passengers to their destinations with 17 intermediate stations along the route.

• The DMTCL hopes that introducing metro rail will take small vehicles off Dhaka streets and cut the use of fossil fuels. It will add new dynamism to the connectivity system in Dhaka and enable people to save their work hours. Altogether, the metro rail system is expected to bring a positive change to the lives of Dhaka residents.

Initially, the trains will run in the morning for some time and then in the evening directly on the Uttara-Agargaon route without stopping at the intermediate stations across Mirpur. The operating time will be extended later and the number of trains will be gradually increased as per demand, said MAN Siddique, managing director of the DMTCL.

“If the train runs every four minutes from the very beginning, passengers won’t be able to cope with it. At one point, we’ll reduce the waiting time for a train at a platform to 30 seconds. If we don’t allow one or two minutes initially for the passengers, they will find it difficult to board or exit the train.”

The Agargaon, Mirpur and Uttara metro stations have been decked up colourfully. People are enthusiastic enough about the inauguration of the metro rail, as they were about the opening of the Padma Bridge when tens of thousands of people thronged the venue amid festivity. The DMTCL is preparing to manage the crowds on the opening days.

THE FARE

The government has fixed the metro rail fare at Tk 5 per kilometre with a minimum fare of Tk 20. A passenger has to pay Tk 60 for travelling to Agargaon from Uttara North. On the other hand, a diesel-run bus in the capital charges Tk 2.50 per kilometre with a minimum fare of Tk 10.

Jatri Kalyan Samity, an association for the passengers’ welfare, demanded a 50 percent cut on the metro rail fare. The Institute for Planning and Development demanded a decrease in metro rail fares to ensure enough passengers ride the metro rail. They also demanded the authorities develop a diversified transportation system centring the metro rail.

A high construction cost and a lack of opportunities for non-operating income were the reasons behind the “failure” to fix a fare that could attract people from the lower income group, according to Prof Shamsul.

Those travelling in small passenger vehicles opt for the transport as the fare is very low -- only Tk 5 on some routes. “If we can’t attract these people, the roads below the metro rail tracks will remain crowded as usual,” he said.

To reduce the burden on the travellers, the authorities should focus on non-operating income which does not come from the fares, he suggested.

“We have only one thing in the basket, which is the revenue scheme. It is evident that we haven’t used the knowledge of the 21st century. We’re just accumulating money from the passengers. Kolkata generates 17 percent of the metro rail’s income from non-operating services. Why can't we?”

Indian newspaper The Telegraph reported that the Kolkata Metro Railway earned Rs 192 million from April to November this year from non-fare revenue. Indian Railways is taking initiatives to increase its non-fare revenue to boost earnings apart from the traditional sources of income. As a part of that endeavour, Metro Railway has been focusing on the earnings through advertisements inside and outside metro rakes, hoardings in open spaces and earnings from new sources, such as health check-up kiosks at different stations.

HOW IT BEGAN

The government formulated the Strategic Transport Plan or STP in 2005 with the cooperation of the World Bank to reduce the unbearable traffic congestion in Dhaka. The 20-year plan (2004-2024) suggested the implementation of various projects, including the metro rail and bus-based advanced public transport system.

The then Dhaka Transport Coordination Board, now known as Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority, was entrusted with the responsibility of implementing the plan. After forming the government in 2009, the Awami League took the initiative to build the metro rail.

A Japan-backed survey from March 2009-2010 recommended the construction of Mass Rapid Transit Line-6 first. Japan International Cooperation Agency verified the feasibility of the project the following year.

The report initially proposed the construction of a metro rail line from Uttara to Sayedabad. Later, the location was changed from Sayedabad to Motijheel, stretching 20.1 km.

The government took up the MRT Line-6 construction project in 2011 with an initial technical and financial commitment from JICA. The final approval for the project was given at the meeting of the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council in December 2012.

The cost of the project was estimated to be around Tk 219.85 billion at that time. Of this, Tk 165.95 billion was supposed to be provided as project assistance by the Japanese government. The Bangladesh government was going to give the remaining Tk 53.9 billion from the state coffers. At the time of approving the project, the metro rail was targeted to be completed between 2012 and 2024.

The government signed a loan agreement with JICA in February 2013 for the implementation of the metro rail project. Later the same year, Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited was formed under the road transport and bridges ministry for the implementation of the project and the maintenance of the metro rail.

A traffic survey was completed in August 2014 and the final design was completed after around five more months. In the next two years, various surveys, including archaeological and environmental, were completed. In 2015, the number of metro rail routes was increased by revising the STP with the help of Japan.

The construction of the metro rail began in Uttara six and a half years ago, with Prime Minister Hasina inaugurating the project work on Jun 26, 2016.

A few days after the inauguration of the project’s construction, the work was somewhat disrupted due to the terrorist attack on the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka. But it resumed with the government assuring security for the foreign workers.

In the latter part of 2016, work on the construction of the metro rail depot began. Piling work began for the construction of an elevated railway line from Uttara to Agargaon in 2017.

Then in 2018, Hasina expressed her desire to inaugurate the metro rail during the celebrations of 50 years of Bangladesh’s independence from Pakistan. Quader later said the metro rail will be inaugurated on Dec 16 Victory Day, 2021.

But the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the construction work amid lockdowns and health protocols. Many workers also caught the coronavirus. Finally, it was not possible to start the dream journey during the golden jubilee of Bangladesh’s independence.

On Jul 19, 2021, the project was extended by one and a half years and the cost went up by nearly Tk 114.87 billion in an ECNEC meeting, taking the total expenditure to Tk 334.72 billion.

According to the revised proposal, the metro rail line will be extended by another 1.16 km from Motijheel to Kamalapur Railway Station. The project has been extended until December 2025 with the additional work.

LOSS AND DESPAIR

The metro rail project is connected to a tragedy that took place on Jul 1, 2016. Seven Japanese nationals were killed in a terrorist attack on Gulshan's Artisan bakery.

They were among 17 foreign diners killed in that attack. Six of the seven Japanese nationals, including two women, were involved with the metro rail projects.

They were doing the feasibility study of the MRT-1 project from Gazipur’s Joydebpur to Keraniganj and MRT-5 from Narayanganj’s Bhulta to Hatirjheel Link Road via Badda, Gabtoli and Dhanmondi.

After the attack, most of the Japanese working in Bangladesh, including those in JICA and the Japanese ambassador, returned to their home country. Later, they were brought back with various initiatives taken by the government.

Some had proposed naming the Dhaka Metro Rail stations after the Japanese victims of the terrorist attack. In July this year, the government constructed a memorial for them at the metro rail depot at Uttara’s Diabari.

GREAT EXCITEMENT

Residents of the city, especially of Mirpur, suffered due to years of construction work that blocked or narrowed the roads through the crowded areas. The route, the main road of Dhaka connecting the city’s north with the south, experienced unbearable traffic jams. Now the residents of Mirpur and Uttara are excited to see the trains running overhead during trials. They are eagerly waiting as the roads have been renovated and beautified ahead of the inauguration.

Prof Shamsul believes that women, the elderly and people with disabilities will benefit from the metro rail.

Bithi Akhter, a resident of Mirpur-11 who recently completed her studies, has said that she feels as if a dream is coming true as she no longer has to go through the hassle of riding overcrowded buses. “You have to fight to get a seat on the bus. I hope there are no such problems on the train.”

Bithi demanded that women-friendly facilities be maintained properly. "I’ve heard that a separate coach will be kept for women. It’s like a dream for us.”

Roman, a resident of Mirpur-12 who gave a single name, said the people of Mirpur suffered the most during the construction of the metro rail. And now, they are going to be the first to enjoy the benefits of metro trains.

"It took 30 minutes to an hour to travel from Mirpur-10 to Agargaon by bus. Now, it’ll only take a few minutes.”

“The metro rail will usher in a major revolution in the way people commute in this area. The number of bus passengers from Mirpur to Uttara isn’t small. No one will go through the trouble of going to Uttara via Kalshi, ECB, Kuril, and the Airport Road now. People will go straight to Diabari by metro rail. It will save them time.”

Rajib Sheikh, the owner of a stationery shop in Mirpur, said the metro construction work had a negative impact on his business. Many other businesses in the area suffered the same as their sales dipped. Some of them even shut down their business.

“We’re now better off after construction is finished. We hope this area will come alive again. There are some reputed schools and colleges here in the neighbourhood and the Cantonment is also nearby. Some residential areas exist near Rokeya Sarani. We hope to have bigger sales in the future.”

[Additional reporting by Zafar Ahmed, Kamal Hossain Talukdar, Faysal Atik and Kazi Nafia Rahman; writing in English by Sabrina Karim Murshed and Md Taif Kamal, and editing by Osham-ul-Sufian Talukder; infographics by Marium Sultana]