Metro rail exhibition, info centre to open in January

With an aim to inform and educate people about the metro rail, a new mode of public transport in Bangladesh, authorities will open a metro rail exhibition and information centre in January next year.

People will be able to view the metro train's interiors first-hand and know about ticket-buying and other necessary processes after visiting the centre.

The exhibition centre, established inside the metro rail depot at the capital's Diabari, will start inviting visitors within two months, as authorities have planned to start operation of the country's first-ever metro rail partially from December next year.

To achieve the December target, metro rail authorities are expected to complete all necessary tests and trial runs without passengers within September next year.

Officials of Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL), the implementing agency of the metro rail project, revealed the information, as the Japanese embassy in Dhaka went on a press tour at the project site yesterday.

Ito Naoki, Japanese ambassador to Bangladesh; Hayakawa Yoho, chief representative of JICA's Bangladesh office; MAN Siddique, managing director of DMTCL; and a group of journalists witnessed test operation of a metro train at Uttara Centre Station.

At that time, the metro train was operated on the viaduct at a speed of 100 kilometres per hour, the highest operational speed.

They along with two former and one current member of Bangladesh national cricket team -- Habibul Bashar, Abdur Razzak and Mehidy Hasan Miraz -- also visited the exhibition centre and took part in a brief programme there.

The Mass Rapid Transit Line-6 or MRT-6, the country's first metro rail service, is being built from Uttara Third Phase to Motijheel at a cost of Tk 21,985 crore.

The lion's share of the project cost is being funded by Japan as a soft loan.

On August 29, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, said service between Uttara and Agargaon, a distance of 11.73 km, will be operational by the end of 2022.

INSIDE THE EXHIBITION CENTRE

Once a person enters the exhibition centre, they will see the process of buying tickets or refilling the balance of the card they would use to board the train, at the entrance of the centre's building.

After that, visitors would go through electronic ticketing gates to enter an exhibition room. In reality, commuters would use their train cards at the gates, which would then open for people to enter the "paid zone" to board the train.

Inside the room, there is a mock-up of the coach and a display of the Farmgate-Karwan Bazar metro rail route.

Visual presentations will show passengers how to use the metro rail once they visit the centre.

"We hope to open the centre in January next year," MAN Siddique said, adding that in the first phase, students would be allowed to visit the centre and common people after that.

Replying to a question, he said people have to pay a "nominal fee" to visit the centre, as they do not provide any service for free.

VISITORS' REACTIONS

After visiting the project, Habibul Bashar said the metro rail will make the lives of city dwellers easy, as they will be able to properly plan their schedules, knowing that the service will bring them to their destinations on time.

Abdur Razzak said he never visited a project site as big as that of the metro rail.

"When I heard about the metro rail, I felt something special. After visiting the site, I found it to be huge. We are very excited, because just like developed countries, the metro rail will operate here too. The country is moving forward," he said.

Ambassador Ito Naoki said this initiative will bring many "first-evers" in Bangladesh, like respite from traffic congestion, punctual train service, and highest safety awareness.