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Bangabandhu Railway Bridge also known as Jamuna Railway Bridge is an under-construction dual-gauge, double-track railway bridge on Jamuna River. This bridge connects Sirajganj with Tangail by railway network.[1] After construction this bridge will be the longest solo railway bridge in Bangladesh. The 90% of this railway bridge is located the area of Tangail District. So the bridge is mainly located in Tangail. As of October 2020, 44 trains per day pass through the existing Bangabandhu Bridge. As the bridge does not allow trains to run at full speed with the speed limit set to 20 km/h and being a single-track railway takes longer to cross the bridge, trains are prone to schedule disruptions. Also, heavy goods trains cannot run on the bridge due to weight restrictions. At the Bangabandhu Railway Bridge, the average time to reach the destination of the trains running between the capital Dhaka and the northern and western regions of the country will be reduced by 2 hours. Besides, the facility of transporting goods by rail from neighboring countries will increase. Apart from this, this bridge will also be useful for easy transportation of passengers and goods on internal routes. Apart from this, the bridge is an important link between SAARC, BIMSTEC, SASEC, and other regional and sub-regional railway routes and trans-Asian railway network. When the bridge is built, the railway tracks of the Bangabandhu Bridge will be removed.[2]
Bangabandhu Railway Bridge যমুনা রেল সেতু | |
|---|---|
 Bangabandhu Railway Bridge during construction | |
| Coordinates | 24°24′09″N 89°46′05″E / 24.4026°N 89.7681°E |
| Carries | Dual-Gauge Rail-line |
| Crosses | Jamuna River |
| Locale | Sirajganj, & Tangail Bangladesh |
| Official name | Bangabandhu Railway Bridge |
| Other name(s) | Jamuna Railway Bridge |
| Owner | Bangladesh Railway |
| Characteristics | |
| Total length | 4.8 kilometres (3 mi) |
| Location | |
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Project details
editFirst, on 6 December 2016, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) approved the construction project of the bridge.[3] For this, the Bangladesh government undertook the project at a cost of Tk 9,734 crore, of which Japan's development cooperation organization Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will provide Tk 7,724 crore. The project is scheduled to be implemented by December 2023.
However, in the next revised project, the deadline has been extended by two years to December 2025. At the same time, the project cost has been increased from Tk 9,734 crore to Tk 16,781 crore. JICA will provide loan assistance of 72% of the construction cost. Bangladesh Railway will implement the project. This project has been carried out by the Obayashi-Toa-JFE (OTJ) Joint Venture and IHI-SMCC Joint Venture for the eastern and western parts, respectively. Additionally, the project involves constructing a 7.6 km double-line railway approach embankment, 30.73 km of dual-gauge track, 16 viaducts, and renovating the Bangabandhu Bridge East and West stations and yards. After completion, the bridge will increase the number of trains that can pass between the capital and the northwest by 88, significantly improving rail connectivity in the region. This bridge can accommodate broad-gauge trains traveling at 120 km/h and meter-gauge trains moving at 100 km/h.
Progress
editThe construction of the bridge has been fully completed in November 2024. A test run was initiated on 26 November, being completed the following day. It is slated to commence commercial operations in January 2025.[4][5]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Topu, Ahmed Humayun Kabir (18 July 2022). "Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Railway Bridge: The next milestone in connectivity". The Daily Star. Archived from the original on 30 April 2024. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
- ^ "যমুনায় দ্বিতীয় রেল সেতুর কাজ শুরু নভেম্বরে, ব্যয় বাড়লো দ্বিগুণ" [The second bridge on the Jamuna River]. Bangla Tribune (in Bengali). 19 October 2020. Archived from the original on 25 November 2020. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
- ^ প্রতিবেদক, নিজস্ব (7 December 2016). "বঙ্গবন্ধু সেতুর পাশে রেলসেতু হবে" [The bridge will make beside Bangabandhu Bridge]. Prothomalo (in Bengali). Archived from the original on 23 October 2023. Retrieved 16 October 2024.
- ^ "Trail train to run across Bangabandhu Railway Bridge Tuesday". Dhaka Tribune. 25 November 2024. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
- ^ "Test run over new Jamuna Rail Bridge completed". Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha. 27 November 2024. Retrieved 29 November 2024.