The long-awaited dream of Dhaka city residents for a rapid and efficient mass transit system has finally become a reality with the grand inauguration of the metro rail from Agargaon to Motijheel.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina officially launched the service, marking a historic moment in the city's transportation landscape on Saturday.
Starting today, the Dhaka Metro Rail system will be open to the public, offering a convenient and time-saving mode of transportation. Metro trains will run from 7:30 am to 11:30 pm, connecting Uttara to Motijheel in both directions. From 11:30 am onwards, trains will operate solely between Uttara and Agargaon.
The 21.26 km metro rail route features a total of 17 stations, connecting key areas of Dhaka, including Uttara North, Pallabi, Mirpur, Farmgate, Karwan Bazar, Shahbagh, Dhaka University, Bangladesh Secretariat, Motijheel, and Kamalapur.
One of the most impressive aspects of this transportation milestone is the significant reduction in travel time. Commuters can now traverse the 20-kilometer distance from Uttara to Motijheel in just 31 minutes, a journey that previously took at least two hours by road.
Metro train will have stoppages at Farmgate, Bangladesh Secretariat and Motijheel on the Agargaon-Motijheel route. A train will be available after every 10 minutes.
The fare chart which was made during the inauguration of the Uttara-Agargaon section of the MRT Line 6 will also be followed in case of Uttara-Motijheel section.
According to the fare chart, the minimum fare was fixed at Taka 20 and the maximum fare for travelling from Uttara to Motijheel was fixed at Taka 100. After the minimum fare of Taka 20 for the first two stations, Taka 10 will be added to travel every next station.
This inauguration signifies a major step in modernizing Dhaka's transportation network, offering its citizens an efficient, environmentally friendly, and congestion-relieving option for their daily commutes. With the Motijheel station now operational, the metro is expected to accommodate up to 60,000 passengers per hour, providing much-needed relief to over 600,000 daily commuters and contributing to a reduction in road traffic congestion.
The Dhaka Metro Rail Line-6 project has been executed at a total cost of Tk 33,472 crore, with significant financial support from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), providing Tk 19,718 crore in loans, while the government has covered the remaining Tk 13,753.52 crore.
This transformative project promises to redefine the way people move around the city, offering a more convenient, affordable, and sustainable transportation option for Dhaka's residents.
