PM to open elevated expressway tomorrow

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will inaugurate the much-awaited elevated expressway's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport-Farmgate section for traffic tomorrow. "The Prime Minister will inaugurate the expressway at a programme to be held at the old trade fair ground at Sher-e-Bangla Nagar in the capital at 3.30pm tomorrow," project director of Dhaka Elevated Expressway AHMS Akter told today.

The airport-Farmgate section will be opened to traffic the next day of the inauguration, the official added.

He said the length of this section is about 11.5 km. There are 15 ramps for boarding. Out of these, two ramps at Banani and Mohakhali will remain closed for the time being. The maximum speed limit for traffic on the expressway will be 60 km per hour.

Three wheelers, bicycles and pedestrians will not be allowed to move on the expressway, while motorbikes cannot run on it right now.

Earlier, the road transport and bridges ministry fixed the toll rates for the Dhaka Elevated Expressway's Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport-Farmgate section ranging from Taka 80 to Taka 400.

Under category 1, the toll rate for car, taxi, jeep, sports utility vehicle, microbus (under 16 seats) and light truck (under 3 tonnes) for crossing the airport-Farmgate section from any point is Taka 80.

The toll rate for medium truck (up to six wheels) for crossing the route from any point is Taka 320 under category 2.

Under category 3, the toll rate for truck (over six wheels) for crossing the route from any point is Taka 400. The toll rate for any bus (16 seated or above) for crossing the route from any point is Taka 160 under category 4.

The total length of the elevated expressway is 46.73km covering Kawla, Kuril, Banani, Mohakhali, Tejgaon, Moghbazar, Kamalapur, Sayedabad, Jatrabari to Kutubkhali on the Dhaka-Chattogram highway.

Initially, the speed limit on the expressway will be 60km per hour and vehicles need 10 minutes to travel the 11km distance from the HSIA to Farmgate.

With an 11.5km mainline and 11km ramp, the length of the part will be 22.5km. Initially, 13 out of 15 ramps in this part will be opened. The ramps at Banani and Mohakhali will be opened once their construction is complete.

The total expenditure of the project is estimated at Taka 8,940 crore, while the viability gap funding is Taka 2,413 crore, which will be provided by Bangladesh government.

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