Road Transport and Bridges Adviser Muhammad Fouzul Kabir Khan on Sunday said the government has taken a multimodal transport plan, aiming to integrate all modes of transport — road, rail and waterways — based on suitability.
“Land acquisition is a costly process. We need to move away from this and give more importance to other modes of transport,” he said while talking to reporters after inaugurating a 18-kilometre stretch of the 48-kilometre Dhaka Bypass Road — from Bhogra in Gazipur to Madanpur in Narayanganj—at the Bhogra Bypass area.
The adviser said due to a lack of skilled engineers in the country, foreign professionals are often brought in to build roads and railways.
“Yet, thousands of engineers graduate from BUET every year. We must reduce dependency on foreign experts and focus on developing skilled engineers within the country,” he said.
Talking about the higher costs of road construction, the adviser said “Our road construction costs are higher than in neighbouring countries, as corruption plays a significant role here. If we can curb corruption, construction costs can be reduced by 20–30 percent.”
Gazipur City Corporation Administrator Sharaf Uddin Chowdhury, Police Commissioner Dr Nazmul Karim Khan, Deputy Commissioner Nafisa Arefin, and senior project officials were present at the event.
The 48-kilometre Dhaka Bypass project — stretching from Bhogra in Gazipur to Madanpur in Narayanganj — is being implemented under the Public-Private Partnership (PPP).
The Joydebpur-Debgram-Bhulta-Madanpur Road is being upgraded to a four-lane highway at a cost of around Tk 3,500 crore. The project is being implemented under the Design, Build, Finance, Operate, and Maintain (DBFOT) model.
The road connects major national highways including the Dhaka-Chattogram, Dhaka-Sylhet, Purbachal Expressway, Dhaka-Mymensingh and Dhaka-Tangail routes.
On Sunday, 18 kilometres of the road were opened to traffic.
Project authorities expect construction to be completed by June next year.
As a result of the project, cargo vehicles will be able to travel from Chittagong port to Mymensingh, Rangpur and Rajshahi divisions in less time without entering Dhaka city, reducing both traffic congestion and accident risks within the capital.
