The New Nation - Internet Edition

THE feasibility study of the Dhaka City Underground Railway or the subway project is expected to begin from December. The study is likely to be completed within one and a half years. An inter-ministerial meeting on Monday took up the Taka ten-crore project. This will be the first step in constructing a mass transit system. The subway will include up to 60 kilometres of railway track. The study will be funded by the government. This project, included in the Second Master Plan for Dhaka City, is an important component of the Dhaka Strategic Transport Plan (STP).

A mega city needs to have roads covering at least 30 percent of its areas. But the roads in Dhaka cover not more than eight percent. Thus alternative mass transit systems are urgently needed to ensure smooth flow of traffic in the city of 120 million. It is estimated that the subway will cover almost 80 percent of the city area. This subway, along with an elevated rail line, is estimated to carry about 44,000 passengers an hour. According to official sources, the average speed of traffic in the city is just five kilometres per hour. This leads to wastage of millions of work hours every day. The subway is expected to save more than five thousand crore Taka annually by saving work hours and bringing down wastage of fuel due to traffic congestion.

In spite of the importance of the proposed subway, its early implementation could not be started due to lack of a sense of urgency. It is heartening that an initiative for feasibility study of the project has now been taken. Commuters in the city would want an early implementation of the subway project to ease the acute traffic problem they face every day. The subway project should be designed with a long-term perspective - at least 2050 - in clear sight.