The first elevated expressway in Bangladesh will be launched in September, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader has said.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the Airport-Farmgate section of the under-construction elevated expressway, the minister said after inspecting the construction work of the Dhaka Elevated Expressway in the Kawla area adjacent to Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on Saturday.
The minister said once the entire work of this expressway is complete, traffic congestion in Dhaka city will decrease to a large extent.
It will also have a positive impact on the economy, said the minister.
The much-anticipated four-lane 19.73-km Dhaka elevated expressway, with 31 ramps, is being constructed under the public-private partnership (PPP) method to ease vehicular movement in and around the capital.
According to the project, the First Dhaka Elevated Expressway (FDEE) Company Ltd is the investor company.
Italian Thai Development Public Company Ltd has 51% of the shares, China Shandong International Economic and Technical Co-operation Group (CSI) has 34% and Sinohydro Corporation Ltd has 15% of the shares.
The total expenditure of the project is estimated at Tk8,940 crore. Of the total cost, Tk2,413 crore will be provided by the Bangladesh government.
As per project details, the first contract was signed on January 19, 2011 and the reviewed agreement was signed on December 15, 2013 and the project completion period was from July 2011 to June 2024.
The total length of the elevated expressway is 46.73 km including 19.73 km of the main elevated portion.
The expressway will cover Kawla, Kuril, Banani, Mohakhali, Tejgaon, Moghbazar, Kamalapur, Sayedabad, Jatrabari to Qutubkhali on Dhaka-Chittagong highway.