[🇧🇩] City Buses, Metro Rail, Urban Transport & City Road Infra

[Saif]

Gabtoli-Dasherkandi metro rail project to go before ECNEC Wednesday, cost estimated at Tk455.03 billion

Bangladesh plans a new Dhaka metro route, Line-5 Southern Route, from Gabtoli to Dasherkandi at an estimated Tk455. 03 billion. The government will fund Tk151. 97 billion, with loans from ADB and South Korea covering the rest. Scheduled for September 2026–August 2033, it awaits ECNEC approval...

en.prothomalo.com

Gabtoli-Dasherkandi metro rail project to go before ECNEC Wednesday, cost estimated at Tk455.03 billion

Staff Correspondent
Dhaka

Metro rail Prothom Alo file photo

The government has taken an initiative to build a new metro rail route from Gabtoli to Dasherkandi in Dhaka. The project, titled the “Dhaka Mass Rapid Transit Development Project (Line-5): Southern Route”, is estimated to cost Tk455.03 billion (45,503 crore).

Of this amount, Tk151.97 billion will be financed by the government. The remaining Tk303.06 billion will be secured as project loans from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and South Korea.

According to the Planning Commission, the project is scheduled to be implemented from September 2026 to August 2033. It may be placed before the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) on Wednesday for approval.

Speaking about this, transport infrastructure expert and Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) professor Md Hadiuzzaman told Prothom Alo, “The tendering process for the new metro project has created an opportunity for open competition. That opportunity did not exist in the projects financed by Japanese loans. The tenders were designed in such a way that no companies other than Japanese ones could participate.”

He believes that moving away from dependence on a single source of financing will also help reduce costs. However, the expert said the project cost could rise or fall after companies participate in the tender process. Experts have also stressed the need to remain vigilant about quality.

Metro rail route

The proposed new metro route will begin at Gabtoli and run through Technical Mor (Intersection), Kalyanpur, Shyamoli, College Gate, Asad Gate, Sukrabad, Karwan Bazar, Hatirjheel, Tejgaon, Aftabnagar, Aftabnagar Centre, Aftabnagar East and Nasirabad before reaching Dasherkandi.

A depot will be built at Dasherkandi under the project. The metro line will run underground from Gabtoli to Aftabnagar and on an elevated viaduct from Aftabnagar to Dasherkandi. Of the total route, 13 kilometres will be underground and the remaining four kilometres elevated.

How much will it cost?

The largest share of the project cost will go towards constructing the main line, stations and depot. An estimated Tk177.37 billion has been allocated for this, accounting for 39 per cent of the total cost.

Another Tk132.58 crore, or 29 per cent of the total, will be spent on electrical and mechanical equipment and the rail system. A further Tk48.21 billion will be spent on procuring trains and depot equipment.

The proposal also includes Tk49.79 billion for land acquisition and rehabilitation and Tk16.26 billion for consultancy services. Another Tk9.31 billion has been allocated for utility relocation. Around 134 hectares of land will need to be acquired and people rehabilitated for the project.

According to Planning Commission documents, the estimated cost of the project has been revised several times. It was initially set at Tk546.19 billion, before being reduced to Tk477.21 billion and then to Tk476.45 billion.

Following the latest review held on 16 July 2026, the project cost was reduced further to Tk455.03 billion. This is Tk21.41 billion lower than the previous proposal.

The project documents state that tunnel boring technology will be used to construct the underground section. The feasibility study was completed in October 2022.

The project has been included in the Annual Development Programme (ADP) for the 2026–27 fiscal year as a new, unapproved project for foreign financing. The Planning Commission has recommended that the project be approved.​

 

[Saif]

Tk 126b cut from costs of 3 metro rail projects

A prolonged uncertainty over the costs of three major metro-rail projects is nearing an end, with their revised development proposals set to receive approval soon after the government cut more than Tk 126 billion from their projected costs. However, even after the reductions, the combined estimate

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Tk 126b cut from costs of 3 metro rail projects

A prolonged uncertainty over the costs of three major metro-rail projects is nearing an end, with their revised development proposals set to receive approval soon after the government cut more than Tk 126 billion from their projected costs.

However, even after the reductions, the combined estimated cost of MRT-1, MRT-5 North and MRT-5 South will remain over Tk 2.5 trillion.

Of the three projects, MRT-1 is now proposed to cost around Tk 1.20 trillion, MRT-5 North Tk 899 billion and MRT-5 South Tk 455.03 billion, according to project and Planning Commission officials.

MRT-5 South is set to be placed before the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) at its meeting on Wednesday, officials said. The project cost has been reduced by Tk 91.15 billion from the original development project proposal (DPP) prepared in 2023 and by Tk 22.18 billion from the estimate made later because of delays in approving the DPP.

The DPPs of MRT-1 and MRT-5 North have also been revised and sent to the Planning Commission, with their costs reduced by Tk 40 billion and Tk 63.99 billion respectively.

Project Evaluation Committee meetings on the two projects were held on 30 August, and Planning Commission officials said they may be placed before the next ECNEC meeting.

The three metro rail projects had remained stalled for nearly two years, mainly over contract packages for MRT-1 and MRT-5 North, after unusually high financial proposals were submitted. The Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) had alleged that the high bids resulted from a lack of competition, with a limited number of companies participating in the tenders.

MRT-5 South, meanwhile, remained pending despite its DPP being sent to the Planning Commission first in July 2024 and again towards the end of 2025. The interim government declined to approve the proposal amid concerns over its high estimated cost, leaving the decision for the elected government.

According to DMTCL, MRT-5 South, planned from Gabtoli to Dasherkandi, was initially estimated at Tk 546.18 billion at the design stage in 2023. The estimate was later revised to Tk 477.21 billion when the DPP was submitted for approval during the interim government's tenure. The project is now proposed at Tk 455.03 billion for ECNEC approval.

Meanwhile, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is financing MRT-1 and MRT-5 North. MRT-1 will connect Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport with Kamalapur, with a branch linking Purbachal and Notun Bazar. The 31.24-kilometre MRT-1 will include both elevated and underground sections.

The MRT-1 project, originally approved in 2019 at Tk 525.61 billion, was sent to the Planning Commission with a revised estimate of Tk 1.14 trillion. It is now proposed at around Tk 1.20 trillion.

MRT-5 North, planned from Hemayetpur to Bhatara, was originally approved in 2019 at Tk 422.34 billion. DMTCL had projected its revised cost at around Tk 930 billion after reviewing unusually high quotations for some contract packages. The revised proposal now puts the cost at Tk 899 billion.

Project officials said the reductions in all three projects were achieved mainly by adjusting internal project components rather than through negotiations with financiers or changes resulting from contract evaluations.​