The Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) is set to launch a shuttle bus service for metro rail passengers from the day the metro rail opens between Uttara and Agargaon at the end of the year.
The Dhaka Mass Transit Development Company (DMTCL) will sign an MoU with the state-owned BRTC on the shuttle service soon, according to DMTCL Managing Director MAN Siddique.
He added that DMTCL will ask BRTC to operate at least 40 buses for the shuttle service at both ends of the metro rail route.
“The bus service will continue until the metro rail service is begun in full from Uttara to Motijheel via Agargaon in December 2023,” he further said.
BRTC sources said 40-50 new air conditioned buses will be added to its fleet by the end of the year for the shuttle service.
When asked why the shuttle service was being introduced, BRTC officials said Uttara North Station, the starting point of the metro service at Diyabari is outside the existing bus network. Agargaon, at the other end of the route, is also not a vital transport hub at the moment.
As a result, passengers will find it difficult to reach the metro rail station without the shuttle service.
BRTC Chairman Md Tazul Islam said the corporation had proposed engaging a maximum of 50 buses for metro rail passengers to travel to Uttara North or Agargaon.
“We will fix the number of buses after the metro rail opens and we get an idea of the demand. If needed, the number of buses can be increased,” he added.
According to BRTC officials, 60-65 drivers will be engaged in driving the BRTC buses, and they should not affect traffic significantly as the buses will not need to park on roads for long periods.
DMTCL and BRTC officials said the buses would run on different routes from Agargaon, including to Motijheel via Farmgate. The shuttle service will also carry passengers from Uttara North Station to Dhaka Airport via Uttara’s Jasimuddin area.
“Apart from the shuttle service, metro rail passengers can also use existing bus services on the same routes,” said MAN Siddique.
The 20.15km Mass Rapid Transit (MRT-6) is the country’s first metro rail project, which is being built from the capital’s Uttara to Motijheel at a cost of Tk22,000 crore. The project has also been extended to Kamalapur.
According to the DMTCL, the overall progress of MRT line-6 stands at 81.19% while the progress in part-1, between Uttara and Agargaon, is 93.76%.
Once completed, the metro rail will be able to carry 60,000 people per hour, reducing travel time from Uttara to Motijheel to less than an hour despite having to go through 16 stations. It now takes about two hours to travel the distance on a regular day.
