Padma Bridge rail link trial run successful

The first trial run of a train between Dhaka's Kamalapur station and Faridpur's Bhanga station across the Padma Bridge was successfully completed on Thursday.
The train, which featured eight new coaches and a new engine, completed the journey in two hours and ten minutes, starting from 10:07 am and maintaining a speed limit of 20 km to 60 km.
The trial run was conducted ahead of the formal inauguration of the 82-kilometre track on October 10, when Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will tour the route by a special train.
The track is part of a 169-kilometre railway line that will connect Dhaka with the southwestern districts of Bangladesh for the first time.
About Thursday's trial run, Bangladesh Railway official Abu Yusuf Mohammad Shamim told the FE that the train maintained a speed of 20 km from Dhaka to Gandaria, 40 km from Gandaria to Keraniganj, 50 km from Keraniganj to Mawa and 60 km from Mawa to Bhanga.
Although the track was designed for speeds up to 120 km, he said the initial speed limit couldn't be higher.
With the speed limit and without stopping at any stations, the train reached Padma Bridge at 11:26 pm and crossed the 6.15-kilometre bridge in seven minutes.
Since it was the first movement of a train on the newly built track, hundreds of enthusiastic people on both sides of the railroad eagerly awaited the sight.
They captured pictures and took videos from the streets, windows of their homes and rooftops. They also participated in the memorable moment by waving their hands to the passengers.
A scenic beauty unfolded as the train entered its 23-kilometre viaduct after Shyampur.
Railway Minister Nurul Islam Sujon, along with political leaders including Shahjahan Khan, Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Railways Ministry ABM Fazle and local members of parliament, experienced the journey in both directions.
While addressing a gathering at Bhanga station, Nurul Islam Sujon announced that commercial train operations on the new track will commence shortly after the Prime Minister's inauguration on October 10.
"As the Padma Bridge Rail Link project has a deadline of June next year, full-fledged train movement will be carried out after the completion of the 87 km Bhanga-Jashore section," he said.
The Dhaka-Bhanga line will also play a role in regional connectivity by establishing a link with the Trans-Asian railway.
When asked about fares and routes to be operated after the inauguration, Railways Secretary Humayun Kabir said they are still working on it. However, the Bangladesh Railway's per-kilometre fare chart will be applicable when the route is finalised.
Director General of Bangladesh Railway Quamrul Ahsan told the FE that trains coming from Khulna and Benapole are likely to get priority as the newly built track through the Padma Bridge will reduce the travel time by almost half compared to now.
"We are planning initially to operate 3 to 4 trains a day, maybe Teesta or Benapole," he said, adding train movements through Khulna, Jeshore, Kotchandpur, Kushtia, Rajbari, Faridpur and Dhaka are under consideration.
On April 4, a trial rail run took place from Bhanga to Mawa station to gain experience in crossing the country's longest bridge over the mighty river Padma.
The government had planned to operate trains on the first day of the Padma Bridge inauguration, but it could not take place due to a delay in starting the work on railway track development on both sides of the road-cum-rail bridge.
The Padma Bridge was inaugurated on June 25, 2022.
China Railway Group Limited (CREC) has been selected as the contractor of the Padma Bridge Rail Link project by the Chinese government after it signed a loan agreement for Tk 210.37 billion out of the project cost of Tk 392.47 billion in April 2018. Under the project, 100 coaches have also been bought to operate new train services in the southwestern districts.
On Thursday's occasion, the railway minister said the Khulna-Mongla rail link will also be inaugurated in October, which will connect the railway with the new track.
Besides, he said the government plans to establish a rail link with southern districts, including Payra Port - the work for which has already begun.
The minister also mentioned that an Inland Container Depot will be established at Panchgaon, one of the stations of the Padma Bridge rail project.

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