Mrt Line-5 Construction: Southern route to cost 35pc higher than northern

The government is going to construct another metro rail line, whose construction cost per km is some 35 percent higher than that of a similar metro line.

The planned Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) Line-5 (southern route) will be 17.3km-long and its estimated cost will be Tk 47,940 crore.  The similar MRT Line-5 (northern route) will be 20km-long and estimated cost Tk 41,239 crore.

Meaning, the northern route's construction would cost Tk 2,062.4 crore per km, while the southern route's would cost Tk 2,771 crore per km -- Tk 708.6 crore (34.35 percent) higher.

Metro authorities said the sharp hike in the prices of construction materials and the devaluation of taka against the US dollar due to the Ukraine war were the main reasons behind the rise in the project's estimated cost.

They also hinted that costs of the MRT Line-5 (northern route) and MRT Line-1 are likely to go up during implementation for the same reasons.

As per the time-bound action plan, the government will build a 140-km network of metro rails consisting six lines in Dhaka and adjacent areas by 2030 to reduce traffic congestion and environmental pollution.

The MRT Line-6 was launched partially in December last year, while construction works of second line -- MRT Line-1, also the first underground metro rail line -- started early this month.

The 31.24km MRT Line-1, which will have both underground and elevated sections, will be implemented at the cost of Tk 52,562 crore.

Meanwhile, the physical work of MRT Line-5 (northern route) is expected to start this July. The 20km line from Hemayetpur to Bhatara via Gabtoli, Mirpur, Gulshan will have a 13.5km underground section and a 6.5km elevated one.

The first three projects are being implemented with Japanese loans.

The DMTCL has carried out the feasibility study for fourth line -- MRT Line-5 (southern route) -- under a project funded by Asian Development Bank (ADB).

The line, which starts from Gabtoli and ends at Dasherkandi via Kalyanpur, Shyamoli, Asad Gate, Russel Square, Panthapath, Karwanbazar, Hateerjheel, Rampura and Aftabnagar, will have 15 stations.

Out of 17.3km, 13.1km would be underground and 4.2 elevated. The deadline of the project is 2030.

Meanwhile, Dhaka Mass Transit Company Ltd (DMTCL), the implementing agency of metro rail projects, yesterday organised the second stakeholders' workshop on MRT Line-5 (southern route) at a city hotel.

At the event, Abdul Wahab, project director of the line's southern route, said the estimated cost of the project was $4.7 billion, when the US dollar rate was Tk 102 in November last year.

The ADB has agreed to give $2.5 billion as loan, he said, and requested the ADB official present at the workshop to provide a $300 million additional fund to avoid co-financers for the project.

The rest will be borne by the government, he added.

When this correspondent enquired about this huge difference between the implementation costs of the southern and northern routes, he gave several reasons.

The costs of MRT-1 and MRT-5 northern routes -- both approved in October 2019 -- were estimated following the rate schedules of 2018/19, but the southern route's project cost was estimated based on rate schedule of June 2022, which is seven to 10 percent higher.

He said the market turmoil following the Ukraine war started after June 2022, which resulted in a massive hike in the prices of rod, cement and stones.

Besides, when the MRT-1 and MRT-5 northern route projects were approved, the dollar rate was Tk 84/85, but regarding the southern route, the cost was estimated at a time when the dollar rate was Tk 102, he added.

"If all these things are taken into consideration, then our project cost was supposed to be increased by 30 to 35 percent. So, it is still relatively low."

However, the cost of the southern route project is likely to increase as the dollar rate currently stands at Tk 107.

DMTCL Managing Director MAN Siddique told The Daily Star that they are preparing the Detailed Project Proposal and expect to submit it to the road transport and bridges ministry within the next month.

They will use the dollar rate of the day they will submit it, he added.

About whether project costs of MRT-1 and MRT-5 northern routes would be increased, he said, "The project costs will increase if the dollar rate does not come down."

Road Transport and Highway Division Secretary ABM Amin Ullah Nuri and ADB's Deputy Country Director Jiangbo Ning also spoke at the workshop.