Metro rail to have separate carriage for women

BRTC assigns 50 double-deckers for metro rail users at Agargaon, Diabari

FE Team | Published: December 26, 2022 23:54:56

Bangladesh authorities have taken steps to ensure that women are able to make use of the country's first metro rail in Dhaka in comfort.
One carriage per train has been reserved for women, but they can also travel in other coaches, reports bdnews24.com.
MAN Siddique, managing director of Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited, highlighted various aspects of the electric train at an event organised on Dec 12 by the Japan International Cooperation Agency, which financed a major portion of the project.
"The metro rail will have six coaches. One coach will be reserved for women only. However, women can also travel in other coaches if they wish to," Siddique said.
The metro rail will be launched on Dec 28. However, in the first stage, the train will only cover a distance of 11.73 km from Uttara to Agargaon. It will take 20 minutes to complete the journey. The time will be 16-17 minutes once the train is fully functional.
There are nine metro rail stations along the Uttara-Agargaon route. Siddique highlighted the special facilities for women, pregnant women, children and the elderly at the stations.
Metro stations will have separate bathrooms for women passengers and special facilities for diaper changing. Seats will also be reserved inside coaches for pregnant women and elderly passengers.
The metro rail will not launch full-scale operations immediately after inauguration, according to DMTCL. The train will only operate in the morning and afternoon during the first week. The operating hours will be gradually increased. The train fare has been fixed at Tk 5 per km. The minimum fare is Tk 20.
Officials in charge of construction and management of the metro rail said that the six-coach train was made with up-to-date technology and will run at a maximum speed of 100 kmph.
The metro rail section from Agargaon to Motijheel will launch in December 2023 in the second phase and the section up to Kamalapur afterwards, Siddique said.
Officials said that the sale of train tickets would begin after the announcement of the inauguration ceremony. Initially, MRT passes will be issued and can only be recharged from station counters.
Single-journey tickets can also be purchased from station counters or ticket vending machines.
Siddique said that 10 trains will be kept ready before the inauguration. Two more trains will be prepared as a backup.
In 2013, the government signed a loan agreement with Japan for the construction of the metro rail after conducting research and feasibility studies. Detailed design work for the project began the following year.
Due to the COVID pandemic, DMTCL decided to delay the launch of the mega project to December 2022.
Another report adds : BRTC assigns 50 double-deckers for metro rail users at Agargaon, Diabari Passengers deboarding at Agargaon are likely to face a similar predicament.
However, the Dhaka Mass Transit Company Ltd revealed that the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation will provide shuttle bus services to Diabari for passengers in Uttara and nearby areas. Similarly, a BRTC bus line from Motijheel to Agargaon will be activated for metro rail users.
The DMTCL and the BRTC signed an agreement on Nov 17, designating 50 double-decker buses to shuttle passengers from the Diabari and Agargaon stations.
"Under the agreement, BRTC will carry out the work of transporting passengers," said MAN Siddique, managing director of DMTCL.
The BRTC confirmed that the 50 double-decker buses will begin operations on the two routes from the inauguration day.
On the Motijheel-Agargaon route, buses will travel via Farmgate, Karwanbazar, Shahbagh and Gulistan. The other route stretches from Diabari to Uttara's House Building bus stop.