Metro rail likely to be launched on trial basis by end of this month

Country's first-ever metro rail is expected to be launched on a trial basis by the end of this month.

According to authorities concerned, officials were asked to complete all preparations for the trial by May 24.

Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, however, will announce the date for this experimental journey on Tuesday.

After this test, the authorities will operate the trains between four to five stations and then is expected to formally launch the service next year.

During a visit to the project site in Uttara, particularly the Uttara North and Uttara Centre stations on Saturday, this correspondent saw several hundred workers making preparation for the test run.

During the test run, the train would be operated on all tracks inside the depot and then on the viaducts.

During the test, people from high-rise buildings will be able to see the operation of metro trains.

Mass Rapid Transit Line-6 or MRT-6, the country's first metro rail, is being built from the capital's Uttara third phase to Motijheel at a cost of Tk 22,000 crore.

Once complete, the metro train will be able to carry 60,000 people an hour, reducing travel time from Uttara to Motijheel to less than an hour despite having 16 stations. It now takes about two hours to travel the distance on a regular day.

The first set of metro trains reached Dhaka on April 21 from Japan, registering a major development for the fast-track project of the government. The second set reached Mongla Port yesterday.