Bangabandhu tunnel: Delayed decision delays opening
The construction work of Bangabandhu Tunnel under the Karnaphuli River saw a 99.5 percent completion. However, the tunnel is unlikely to come into operation before September due to the delayed decision to install vehicle scanners there.
Installation of vehicle scanners was not part of the project but was included later for safety reasons. The scanners have to be brought from the UK, installed and also have to go through a test before the tunnel is open for operation, said officials.
In this given situation, Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader yesterday said Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina is likely to open the tunnel by September this year.
He revealed the information at a views-exchange meeting with the officials of the Bridge Division at Setu Bhaban.
In January this year, Quader said the tunnel will open to traffic in April or May this year as 95.50 percent work of its construction had been completed by then.
The 9.1km tunnel, the first of its kind in South Asia, is being built to help develop a modern communication system between Dhaka, Chattogram and Cox's Bazar. It will also be linked to the Asian Highway.
After revisions, the cost of the project rose to Tk 10,690 crore. The deadline for the project was set in December this year. The original cost of the Chinese-funded project was Tk 8,446.64 crore and its deadline was December 2021.
Asked about the delay to open the tunnel, Bridge Division Secretary Monjur Hossain said, "No other work is left except the installation of the vehicle scanners for security purposes. As of today [yesterday], 99.50 percent of its works are done."
He said as per the recommendation of security experts, the scanners have to be installed before opening the tunnel to traffic.
"The scanners have to be brought from the UK, the process of which got delayed due to the Russia-Ukraine war," added Monjur.
"We will try to bring, install and commission the scanners as soon as possible. If everything goes according to the plan, we will be able to open it even before September as told by the minister," he told The Daily Star yesterday.
The cost of the project will not increase as it was included in the operation and maintenance bit, said Monjur, also the executive director of Bangladesh Bridge Authority, the implementing agency of the tunnel project.
Meanwhile, Quader said the authority has collected Tk 660 crore as toll from Padma Bridge till April 25 since the biggest bridge in the country opened to traffic on June 26 last year.
He also said a total of 77,529 motorcycles crossed in between 6:00am of April 20 and 6:00am yesterday and they earned Tk 77.52 lakh in toll from the bikes.
The authorities removed the ban on the operation of bikes over the Padma Bridge on April 20. The move came in after over nine months of the ban imposed on June 27, a day after the bridge was opened, citing security concerns.
The minister also directed the authorities concerned to start preparation for Eid-ul-Azha to make people's journey hassle-free, keeping cattle market, cattle transportation and rain in mind.
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