Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is expected to virtually inaugurate three more mega projects on Tuesday, including a 16-kilometre elevated expressway to ease traffic gridlock in the port city of Chittagong.
The projects include the 16-km long expressway stretching from the city’s busy Lalkhan Bazar to Patenga, Bakolia Access Road, and DT-Bayezid Link Road.
The prime minister will inaugurate the projects from her residence Ganabhaban in Dhaka through a video conference, said sources in Chittagong district administration.
Earlier on October 28, the prime minister inaugurated the much-anticipated Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Tunnel constructed under Karnaphuli River and she also unveiled the Chittagong-Cox’s Bazar Rail Line on Sunday.
All the projects were implemented by the Chittagong Development Authority (CDA) under the direction of the Public Works Ministry.
Authorities hope that a vehicle may take only a half hour instead of the current two hours to reach Patenga, an entry point of the recently opened Bangabandhu Tunnel, from the main city point GEC area.
Moreover, the expressway will play a vital role in reducing the longstanding traffic jams in the port commercial city of the country.
Some 90% work of the Elevated Expressway Project involving around Tk40 billion has already been completed.
Local Awami League insiders see the project as a gift from their party president Sheikh Hasina for Chattogram people just before the national election to be held in January.
Mahfuzur Rahman, project director of the elevated expressway, also executive engineer of the CDA, told UNB that the section stretching from the entry point of the tunnel in Patenga to Tigerpass area is ready to open to vehicular movement.
But, work on the Lalkhan Bazar to Tigerpass part of the expressway is yet to be completed, he said, adding that it will take around two months to fully complete it.
The CDA decided to name the expressway after the late Awami League leader ABM Mohiuddin Chowdhury, also a former mayor of Chittagong City Corporation.
According to CDA sources, to ease the traffic congestion in the city, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council approved the Chittagong Elevated Expressway project on July 11, 2017.
First, the cost of the project was estimated at Tk32.50 billion. The project was supposed to be 100% completed within three years from July 2017 to June 2020 but it was not. In the second phase, the time was extended till June 2022. However, before the expiry of the period, it is proposed to extend the period. In the third phase, the time has increased till June 2023.
At the same time, the construction cost of the project increased to Tk43.69 billion. The CDA is jointly implementing the project with a Chinese company, Max-Ranken Joint Venture.
