Test train reaches Jashore from Bhanga in an hour

Laying of the main railway line from Bhanga to Jashore has already been completed and the authorities are carrying out different tests on this section with an aim to open the entire Dhaka-Jashore line for commercial operation within four months.

Once the 169km Dhaka-Jashore route is fully operational, it will halve the travel time from the capital to Jashore. It now takes more than eight hours to travel the distance on rail.

As part of tests, the authorities of the Padma Bridge Rail Link Project yesterday operated passenger and freight trains on the 87km section -- Bhanga to Rupdia of Jashore.

The Dhaka-Bhanga section via the Padma Bridge was opened in October last year. Several intercity trains now use the route.

"We are hopeful that the Bhanga-Jashore section would be ready for train operation by June," Project Director Afzal Hossain told The Daily Star yesterday.

The government is implementing a Tk 39,246.80 crore project, the biggest infrastructure project of Bangladesh Railway, to link Dhaka with Jashore via the Padma Bridge.

The rail line will reduce the Dhaka-Jashore travel distance by more than 185km, and Dhaka-Khulna by 212km, shows a project document.

Besides, opening of the line will reduce the pressure on Joydebpur-Ishwardi section via the Bangabandhu Bridge. There are speed and load restrictions on Bangabandhu Bridge.

Currently, trains from Dhaka to different western districts use the Joydebpur-Ishwardi section, a single line route, going beyond its capacity. This causes longer travel times.

Besides, BR cannot operate freight trains from its western zone to Dhaka due to load restrictions on Bangabandhu Bridge.

BHANGA TO JASHORE IN 59 MINS

A passenger train with four carriages and a power car took 59 minutes to reach Rupdia from Bhanga yesterday. Only some officials of Bangladesh Railway, its consultants and the contractor boarded the train.

The highest speed of the passenger train was 120km per hour, which is the design speed of this section, Samima Nasrin, deputy director of the project, told this correspondent.

She said a freight train with five wagons and a power car was operated on this route earlier on the day and its highest speed was 80kmph, the design speed for freight train.

"We actually checked the track and marked those portions which could not meet the design standard. We will continue the tests until the operation of trains on the entire line becomes smooth," she said.

Project Director Afzal Hossain said they have already started installation of signaling system at the stations along the route. He hoped the work would be completed by June.

He, however, said they may not be able to complete by June some work, including the construction of Bhanga junction and an underpass at TTpara in Dhaka.

But this would not hamper train operation, Afzal said.

The project approved in March 2016 and implemented mostly with Chinese funding, was supposed to be completed by June 2022. But the deadline was later deferred to June this year.

The project saw 91 percent progress till last month and the authority sought time until June 2026, including one year defect liability period, for completion of the project.