Residents of Dhaka are currently waiting to board the metro train and travel to their places of employment or study. Hopefully, the red-green flag will be flown on the metro rail during December, the bijoy month.
In many major cities across the world, metro rail is essentially a fast transit system. A government initiative for the Dhaka Metropolitan Area's public transportation system is the Dhaka Metro Rail. The Brac Institute of Governance and Development found that whereas the average speed of cars on Dhaka's roadways was around 21 (21.2 km/h) in 2004, it was only 6 (6.8 km/h) in 2015. As a result, the bus ride from Uttara to Motijheel takes longer than 3 to 4 hours.
By metro train, Motijheel can be reached from Uttara in just 40 minutes. It is expected that such transportation will play an important role in the economic growth of the country by changing the lifestyle of people and increasing their productive time.
The government was working on the idea of a project called the "Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project" to introduce metro rail in Bangladesh. The estimated overall cost of the project is $2.82 billion, of which JICA will contribute around $2.13bn at a 0.01% interest rate. The Bangladeshi government will contribute the final 25% of the funding.
The first trial run from Dia Bari to Uttara was carried out on August 29, 2021, and it is anticipated that commercial operations would begin on the Uttara-Agargaon line in December 2022.
Every government mega-project has a business component. But, like other commercial initiatives, the fundamental goal of government-initiated projects is not profit-making. Most of the time, the government experiences losses and typically offers a sizable subsidy so that citizens can take advantage of accessible services.
Even though this program results in financial loss, the nation's economy gains from it in other ways. The daily cost to run the metro train will be around Tk2.33 crore. So, if 483,000 passengers travel by metro rail every day, it will come up. The actual cost of taking the metro rail has not yet been determined, so these figures on rates are currently simply rough estimates.
In Bangladesh, there is a significant economic loss as a result of traffic congestion. A BUET study from 2018 estimates that the annual cost of traffic congestion in Dhaka city is $4.4bn, or more than 10% of the national budget. According to a 2017 World Bank research, 3.8 million working hours are lost every day due to traffic congestion in Dhaka. When the price of wasted hours is considered, the loss is significant, which has a detrimental effect on the national economy.
Bangladesh might save $2.6bn, according to Moazzem Hossain, head of the Accident Research Institute, if traffic congestion in Dhaka could be reduced by 60%. The metro rail project will result in annual savings of $2.4bn, or 1.5% of the country's GDP. In addition, the metro rail would speed up daily living for more than 15 million people in Dhaka and make commuting easier, which will have a significant beneficial effect on the economy.
Bus shortages during rush hours, heavy traffic, crowding, physical or verbal abuse, exorbitant rates, and the absence of metering in CNG and taxi cabs cause immense agony for the people of Dhaka city and a lower desire for travel by public transportation. Those who cannot afford it and are frequently inconvenienced by a lack of accessible transportation would benefit from metro rail's easy transportation service. A train will travel to each stop every four minutes, carrying about 60,000 passengers per hour thanks to the air-conditioned transportation facility it will provide.
The MRT's expenses, such as its electricity costs, personnel wages, maintenance, foreign loans, and investment returns from the government, cannot be fully covered by the rental income. In order to do so, the authority intends to derive at least 30% of its revenue from sources other than ticket sales. Each station will be connected to a station plaza, a transit-oriented development (TOD), and other commercial facilities. Each of the TOD hubs will feature a top-notch theme park, lodging options, a market for basic necessities, and shopping centres.
Operation and maintenance of metro rail will require a lot of manpower, which will lead to numerous job opportunities. Each metro railway station will have an operating room, ticket counter, lounge, waste management plant, prayer space, fire-fighting system, escalator, lift, and more.
Apart from that, the commercial centres around the stations will require a group of workers to run the businesses. These positions will boost economic activity and ultimately contribute to the country's economy.
The metro rail will improve transportation connectivity and spur the growth of several privately run businesses near the stations. Additionally, new firms will have chances to grow as a result of enhanced transportation infrastructure, while already existing enterprises will profit. Overall, the GDP of the nation will benefit greatly from the presence of these enterprises near stations and routes.
The introduction of metro rail will usher the people of our nation into a new age of technical development. In industrialized nations, metro rail and other forms of public transportation have been combined to create an enhanced route system that allows users to get where they're going using just one credit card. The nation's transportation network will benefit from digitization as well as a gradual transition to a cashless economy, thanks to the metro rail system.
The population density in Dhaka city will decrease once the metro rail opens. People can simply go to Dhaka for employment and reside outside the city for very affordable housing costs. For instance, if all routes are followed, residents in Gazipur or Narayanganj can go to the central city in under an hour.
Future expansion is possible for any metro rail route. As a result, neighbouring cities can be connected to the complete transit system. Additionally, residents of these districts can work in the core city without relocating there.
Compared to other megacities, Dhaka has substantially worse air pollution. The list of the most polluted cities in the world has constantly been topped by Dhaka in recent years. The majority of the pollution in the environment is caused by the use of fossil fuels, which are used by every car on the roads of Dhaka.
Bus and other modes of transportation will become less popular in Dhaka as metro rail becomes "electrified" and can carry more people each hour. Because fewer cars would be on the road as a result, metro rail will have a favourable effect on the capital's environment. In addition, metro rail will utilize mass-spring system (MSS) technology to lessen noise, shock, and vibration. This innovation will lessen metro rail's environmental impact.
Finally, it is safe to say that metro rail is the ideal project that can transform Dhaka city from its current state to one that is modern and cosmopolitan.
Ali Akbar Rouf is a researcher and columnist.
