Airport Road may face traffic jams from tomorrow

Airport Road in Dhaka may witness traffic congestion as metro rail authorities are expected to move utility lines from the airport to Khilkhet area from tomorrow night to facilitate the construction of Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Line-1 (MRT Line-1).

The Dhaka Mass Transit Company Ltd (DMTCL) in a circular today requested commuters to plan their journey accordingly.

MRT Line-1 would be the first underground metro rail line in the country.

The 31.24km rail line will have two parts. The 19.87km section from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to Kamalapur (Airport route) will be underground. And, around 11.36km will be elevated from Natun Bazar to Purbachal (Purbachal route).

DMTCL said they would start shifting utility lines from the proposed stations at the airport, the airport's Terminal-3, and Khilkhet areas using special arrangement from 10:00pm tomorrow.

Hence, the airport route may witness traffic congestion during the shifting period, it read.

Contacted, Project Director Abul Kashem Bhuiyan told The Daily Star that they were not certain that the route would see congestion but issued a circular to alert commuters of possible traffic jams.

He said they would shift utility lines from all three stations gradually, which may take up to three months to complete.