Khairul Alam: In the hope of reducing traffic congestion in the capital, the country’s first elevated expressway is opening. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the Airport-Farmgate section of this road on Saturday (2 September) afternoon. Traffic will start from 6 am on Sunday (3 September).
After the unveiling of the Elevated Expressway plaque, the government vehicles will arrive at Farmgate with toll on the Kawla ramp. After this, the Prime Minister will address the inaugural function at the old trade fair ground in Sher-e-Bangla Nagar.
After visiting the Sudhi gathering place on Friday, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader said that the opening of a part of the Udal highway will reduce traffic congestion in the capital to some extent.
In total, 13 thousand 857 crore takas are being spent on the construction of the Flying highway, including the ‘Support to Elevated Expressway’ project.
The 19.73 km long elevated expressway will run from in front of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on the railway line and pass through Banani, Mohakhali, Tejgaon, Moghbazar, Malibagh, Kamalapur to Kutubkhali on the Dhaka-Chittagong highway. It has 27 km long 31 ramps for the car.
The length of the Airport-Farmgate section to be opened is 11.5 km. 13 of the 15 ramps are opening in this section, which is 11 km long.
According to the guidelines of the bridge department, the construction authority will allow 60 km per hour traffic on the elevated expressway and 40 km per hour on the ramp. As a result, the car will reach Farmgate from the airport in 12 minutes. Currently the same route takes more than an hour on weekdays. It takes a few hours in traffic jams.
The bridge department said in a public notice that pedestrians and two- and three-wheelers will not be allowed to ply on the expressway. The car cannot be stopped. Can’t stop the car and take pictures.
An agreement was signed on January 19, 2011 to build an elevated expressway to go from one end of the city of Dhaka to the other without any obstacles.
The country’s first flyover highway was planned to be completed in three years under Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and was also the first project of PPP.
However, due to the inability of private investors to secure financing, land and design complications have repeatedly delayed construction. The government has announced that the construction of the remaining eight kilometers of the expressway will be completed by June next year.
Vehicles that can be used: The bridge department said that all types of vehicles will not be able to enter the Dhaka Elevated Expressway, which was built to ease traffic congestion in the capital. The authorities have taken this decision to ensure safe travel on the expressway.
No pedestrians, two-wheelers and three-wheelers can use the expressway. However, motorcycle movement will be allowed at any time thereafter.
Only heavy, medium and light trucks, passenger buses, minibuses, microbuses, pickups, SUVs, private cars and taxis can take advantage of the Dhaka Elevated Expressway subject to paying the prescribed toll.