The decision, taken at a cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Tarique Rahman on Sunday, means stations and concrete lane dividers built along the airport-Gazipur corridor will now be demolished, potentially adding to the project’s enormous financial losses.
A Road Transport and Highways Division letter issued on Monday directed the authorities to convert the roughly 20km corridor into a regular three-to-six-lane highway and eventually widen two flyovers from two to four lanes.
The government will also dissolve Dhaka Bus Rapid Transit Company Limited, established to operate the service, and transfer its activities to the Roads and Highways Department.
The authorities have been given 15 days to report progress on the closure process, including resolving legal complications with development partners.
Launched in 2012 under the Awami League government, the project was originally estimated to cost Tk2,040 crore and scheduled for completion in 2016.
Three revisions pushed the cost to Tk4,268 crore. A further proposal last year sought Tk6,598 crore and an extension until 2029, but it was not approved.
The project was designed to carry around 25,000 passengers daily in dedicated bus lanes. Instead, construction narrowed one of the country’s busiest highways, causing years of congestion and hardship.
Seven people also died in construction-related accidents.
A BUET expert panel, led by Prof Samsul Haque, recommended cancellation, describing the project as a case of systemic failure involving faulty design, weak technical scrutiny and poor coordination.
“Even if the BRT buses were launched, Gazipur residents could only travel up to the airport and would then have to change buses again, which is not practical,” Samsul told Dhaka Tribune.
The panel also called for accountability among consultants, officials and agencies involved in the project.
However, cancellation could bring further costs. The Bangladesh Institute of Planners previously estimated that dismantling infrastructure and compensating contractors could exceed Tk1,000 crore.
A Gazipur-based citizens’ platform opposes the decision, arguing that 97% of construction is complete.
Its president, Md Shamsul Haque, said the group would formally protest the cancellation.
For commuters who have endured 14 years of disruption, the promised rapid bus service will now remain a project that never carried a passenger.