The Bangladesh Railway (BR) has taken a new move to improve its operational capacity through institutional development to address challenges posed by the growing passengers and cargo volumes over the past decade.
The state-owned train operator increased its passenger-kilometre ratio to 110 per cent and its tonne-kilometre ratio to 14 per cent during 2009-2019 -- a century after BR's 90 per cent of the network was built.
However, data also shows that BR's operational costs continue to rise. In 2022-23, they totalled Tk 38.50 billion, compared to income of Tk 17.83 billion. This occurred when BR ran 367 passenger and 42 goods trains daily.
"We have many limitations that need to be overcome now to improve operational and management levels, including development activities," an official said.
He said BR's earnings have not kept pace with operational costs, due mainly to rising fuel prices. As a result, the train operator needs to find ways to recover costs within its existing system.
A technical project titled 'Operational Efficiency Improvement of BR' aims to achieve the railway's objectives of safe, affordable, comfortable and environmentally friendly transportation, the official added.
BR has so far implemented 89 projects, establishing links with 43 districts. It now has 873.19 km of new rail line, converted 340.17 km to dual gauge and rehabilitated or reconstructed 1,391.32 km of track.
The Bangladesh Railway (BR), under a master plan, has chalked out more than 235 development projects with an estimated cost of US$30 billion.
Despite the sector being one of the highest budget recipients, BR faces increasing demand for passenger and container transport. But it lacks sufficient locomotives, coaches, cargo wagons and the capacity to maintain both its existing and newly imported rolling stock.
BR officials said the technical project will focus on capacity building in several areas, including ensuring safe, speedy and efficient train operations nationwide. It will also cover project implementation expertise, locomotive and rolling stock maintenance and optimising the use of both development and revenue budgets.
These measures will contribute to BR's institutional capacity building, eventually enabling the recovery of operational costs and promoting economic sustainability.
The Asian Development Bank will provide a grant of Tk 58 million, while the government will contribute Tk 2.4 million.
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