Work on elevated expressway in the capital — the first project under the public-private partnership (PPP) initiative– begins soon to improve its communication network and ease traffic jam.
The cabinet committee on economic affairs yesterday directed the communications ministry to start implementation of the project.
Estimated cost of the project is $1.23 billion or Tk 8,000 crore.
“As per our election pledge, we are starting work on expressway. We are doing so within six months of taking power,” Finance Minister AMA Muhith told journalists when asked about construction of the expressway.
The communications ministry will first conduct a feasibility study and then float tender for the project, Muhith said.
The cabinet body yesterday exempted the Bridge Division from complying with the Public Procurement Regulation (PPR) for toll collection on Jamuna Bridge so that it can give this responsibility to the army.
According to Dhaka Transport Plan (DTP) of the communications ministry, there will be three expressway routes in the city. Of these, one will be from Old Airport to Jatrabari via Tejgaon, Moghbazar and Malibagh, one from Sonargaon Hotel to Gulistan via Kataban and New Market and the other from New Airport to Kuril.
The finance minister said a committee has been formed to ensure smooth completion of the work.
The communications ministry has also been asked to study monorail system during the feasibility study of expressway, he added.
The government has a plan to set up underground rail track from Joydevpur to Banani. It now wants to extend it to Kamalapur.
Meanwhile, in the proposed budget for next fiscal year, the government has for the first time allocated Tk 2,500 crore for PPP initiative. The government will participate in the initiative, and has also released a position paper on the PPP.
In the position paper, some other priority projects have also been included. These are construction of Dhaka city underground rail track, flying railway surrounding the capital and construction of Dhaka-Narayanganj-Gazipur-Dhaka elevated expressway. The mode of implementation of the projects has also been mentioned in it.
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