PM Hasina inaugurates Mouchak-Moghbazar flyover

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has formally opened the Mouchak-Moghbazar flyover to public.

She inaugurated the 8.7km flyover through video conferencing from her official residence Ganabhaban around 12:30pm on Thursday.

Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister Rashed Khan Menon, Food Minister Advocate Qamrul Islam, Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) Mayor Mohammad Sayeed Khokon and Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) Panel Mayor Osman Gani were present in Mouchak during the inauguration.

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A section of the Mouchak-Moghbazar flyover | Rajib Dhar/Dhaka Tribune

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Addressing the inauguration ceremony, the prime minister said: “The number of cars are growing on the streets, which is leading to more traffic jams. We have undertaken the flyover construction projects to alleviate the traffic congestion. The Moghbazar-Mouchak flyover will contribute to achieving that goal. People living in those areas will be able to commute much easier and faster.” The Moghbazar-Mouchak flyover was a cause for widespread criticism for two consecutive cost hikes and its faulty design: it was mistakenly designed for left-hand driving, when, in Bangladesh, roads are made for right-hand driving.  Moreover, this is the first flyover which will have traffic signals at the Mouchak and Malibagh intersection, whereas such infrastructures are generally built to allow uninterrupted traffic flow. Previously, the first two phases of the flyover was opened to traffic on March 2016 and September 2016, respectively.The estimated cost of the flyover was Tk343.70 crore when the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council approved it in 2011. The project missed a couple of deadlines and eventually the cost hiked to Tk1,218.89 crore.This article was first published on Bangla Tribune