Lack of investment slows down high-speed train project
Upon project completion, passengers will be able to travel between Dhaka and Chittagong in just an hour instead of the current six to seven hours by road
File photo of railway tracks | Syed Zakir Hossain/Dhaka Tribune
Shohel Mamun
Publish : 08 Jan 2022, 10:35 AMUpdate : 20 Feb 2022, 02:23 PM
The Dhaka-Chittagong high-speed train project is at risk of not being completed by the 2030 deadline due to a lack of interest from overseas investors.
If Bangladesh Railway (BR) can implement the project by 2030 as planned, passengers will be able to travel between Dhaka and Chittagong in just one hour instead of the current six to seven hours by road.
BR has already sought investment from China, India, UK, France, Spain and Germany as well as the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
“We have approached overseas investors for a funding of the Dhaka-Chittagong high-speed train project as we have the capability to return the loan. However, the funding has still not been confirmed from anywhere yet and discussions are continuing,” said Railway Minister Nurul Islam Sujan.
The estimated cost of the project is around $11.4 billion, or Tk96,752 crore, according to the feasibility study commissioned by BR. The train will have a maximum speed of 300km/hour.
Currently, Bangladesh Railway operates 360 passenger trains on its 3,000km network across the country. However, none of these trains can travel faster than 70km/hour.
India has been implementing a bullet train project, while high-speed trains are already on the move in China and Japan.
Meanwhile, a $6 billion high-speed rail line connecting China with its Southeast Asian neighbour Laos opened on December 3 last year.
“We have decided in principle to construct a dedicated cord-line [between Dhaka and Chittagong] for operating trains at a maximum speed of 300km/hour,” said Quamrul Ahsan, project director (feasibility study and detailed design) of the Dhaka-Chittagong High Speed Railway Project.
“It will be operated by electric traction on a ballast-less track for the first time in the country,” he added.
“We will reach electrification of train operations, which is important as we are still very behind compared to neighboring countries,” said Railway Minister Nurul Islam Sujan, mentioning that there were already many electric trains in India.
Initiatives for possible funding
A team led by the railway minister recently met with investors in the UK, France, Spain and Germany to secure funding for the ambitious project.
“Discussions with the European investors were bright. We are waiting now for their further response following our proposal,” said Nurul Islam.
The meetings with the investors were held between November 22 and December 5 last year.
The BR took the initiative to launch a high-speed train on the Dhaka-Chittagong route in early 2018. Since then, it has been searching for investors.
Last September, the government and the ADB discussed funding for the Dhaka-Chittagong high speed train.
The ADB took the proposal positively, as the project is economically viable and will connect the country's business capital with its administrative capital.
At the beginning of last year, two Chinese companies expressed interest in forming a joint venture to construct, operate and manage funds for a proposed high-speed railway on the Dhaka-Chittagong route. They proposed engaging in the multi-billion-dollar project based on a public-private partnership (PPP) under a government-to-government initiative.
However, none of the proposals have been finalized yet.
“The project requires massive investment, and the investors will think about the returns. It is viable to implement the high-speed train between the two important cities of the country as passenger traffic is very high,” said Dr Moazzem Hossain of the civil engineering department at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet).
“Passengers will likely prefer high-speed trains over flying to Chittagong if the train service is available and is comfortable. Passengers can bear the fare once per capita income doubles to around $5,000 between 2030 and 2035,” he added.
One detailed design ready
China Railway Design Corporation (CRDC) in partnership with the Bangladeshi firm Mazumder Enterprise has already prepared a detailed design of the high-speed railway at a cost of Tk,110.6 crore. Further work is being slowed down due to the lack of funds.
“Now the preliminary development project proposal is being prepared for submission to the Economic Relations Division. As the source of funds for the project is not ready, procedures are moving slowly” said a senior official of the BR.
Earlier, the Covid-19 pandemic hampered the preparation of the detailed design.
Feasibility study
According to the feasibility study, the journey from Dhaka to Chittagong will take only 56 minutes once the high-speed train goes into service.
If the train stops at four stations between Dhaka and Chittagong, the journey will take 73 minutes.
Six stations are planned on the proposed route — in Dhaka, Narayanganj, Comilla, Feni, Pahartali and Chittagong.
The total length of the track is 227.3km and approximately 50,000 passengers are expected to use the service each day.
The train route will go through Narayanganj alongside the Dhaka-Chittagong highway, instead of along the existing Tongi-Narsingdi route.
The high-speed railway will be on a double track and mostly elevated to ensure high speed at level crossings and other entry points of the line.
Lack of investment slows down high-speed train project
Upon project completion, passengers will be able to travel between Dhaka and Chittagong in just an hour instead of the current six to seven hours by road
The Dhaka-Chittagong high-speed train project is at risk of not being completed by the 2030 deadline due to a lack of interest from overseas investors.
If Bangladesh Railway (BR) can implement the project by 2030 as planned, passengers will be able to travel between Dhaka and Chittagong in just one hour instead of the current six to seven hours by road.
BR has already sought investment from China, India, UK, France, Spain and Germany as well as the Asian Development Bank (ADB).
“We have approached overseas investors for a funding of the Dhaka-Chittagong high-speed train project as we have the capability to return the loan. However, the funding has still not been confirmed from anywhere yet and discussions are continuing,” said Railway Minister Nurul Islam Sujan.
The estimated cost of the project is around $11.4 billion, or Tk96,752 crore, according to the feasibility study commissioned by BR. The train will have a maximum speed of 300km/hour.
Currently, Bangladesh Railway operates 360 passenger trains on its 3,000km network across the country. However, none of these trains can travel faster than 70km/hour.
India has been implementing a bullet train project, while high-speed trains are already on the move in China and Japan.
Meanwhile, a $6 billion high-speed rail line connecting China with its Southeast Asian neighbour Laos opened on December 3 last year.
“We have decided in principle to construct a dedicated cord-line [between Dhaka and Chittagong] for operating trains at a maximum speed of 300km/hour,” said Quamrul Ahsan, project director (feasibility study and detailed design) of the Dhaka-Chittagong High Speed Railway Project.
“It will be operated by electric traction on a ballast-less track for the first time in the country,” he added.
“We will reach electrification of train operations, which is important as we are still very behind compared to neighboring countries,” said Railway Minister Nurul Islam Sujan, mentioning that there were already many electric trains in India.
Initiatives for possible funding
A team led by the railway minister recently met with investors in the UK, France, Spain and Germany to secure funding for the ambitious project.
“Discussions with the European investors were bright. We are waiting now for their further response following our proposal,” said Nurul Islam.
The meetings with the investors were held between November 22 and December 5 last year.
The BR took the initiative to launch a high-speed train on the Dhaka-Chittagong route in early 2018. Since then, it has been searching for investors.
Last September, the government and the ADB discussed funding for the Dhaka-Chittagong high speed train.
The ADB took the proposal positively, as the project is economically viable and will connect the country's business capital with its administrative capital.
At the beginning of last year, two Chinese companies expressed interest in forming a joint venture to construct, operate and manage funds for a proposed high-speed railway on the Dhaka-Chittagong route. They proposed engaging in the multi-billion-dollar project based on a public-private partnership (PPP) under a government-to-government initiative.
However, none of the proposals have been finalized yet.
“The project requires massive investment, and the investors will think about the returns. It is viable to implement the high-speed train between the two important cities of the country as passenger traffic is very high,” said Dr Moazzem Hossain of the civil engineering department at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (Buet).
“Passengers will likely prefer high-speed trains over flying to Chittagong if the train service is available and is comfortable. Passengers can bear the fare once per capita income doubles to around $5,000 between 2030 and 2035,” he added.
One detailed design ready
China Railway Design Corporation (CRDC) in partnership with the Bangladeshi firm Mazumder Enterprise has already prepared a detailed design of the high-speed railway at a cost of Tk,110.6 crore. Further work is being slowed down due to the lack of funds.
“Now the preliminary development project proposal is being prepared for submission to the Economic Relations Division. As the source of funds for the project is not ready, procedures are moving slowly” said a senior official of the BR.
Earlier, the Covid-19 pandemic hampered the preparation of the detailed design.
Feasibility study
According to the feasibility study, the journey from Dhaka to Chittagong will take only 56 minutes once the high-speed train goes into service.
If the train stops at four stations between Dhaka and Chittagong, the journey will take 73 minutes.
Six stations are planned on the proposed route — in Dhaka, Narayanganj, Comilla, Feni, Pahartali and Chittagong.
The total length of the track is 227.3km and approximately 50,000 passengers are expected to use the service each day.
The train route will go through Narayanganj alongside the Dhaka-Chittagong highway, instead of along the existing Tongi-Narsingdi route.
The high-speed railway will be on a double track and mostly elevated to ensure high speed at level crossings and other entry points of the line.
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