23 km elevated rail way from Padma

No level crossing till Jessore

Mahfuz Emran:The railway is going to Jessore from Dhaka via Padma bridge. The total length of this railway is 162 kilometers. Of these, 23 km will be fully elevated (flying). There will be no level crossing anywhere on the railway to Jessore. It will save time, accidents will not happen. It is going to be the first railway in the country without flying and level crossings. Along with the bridge, work on the Padma Bridge rail link project is also in full swing.
However, even if the road bridge is opened this year, the train will have to wait till 2024.
The best use of technology will be made across the railways. Railways are being constructed across the rivers Padma, Buriganga and Dhaleshwari. 23.36 km of railways are elevated due to various reasons including low lands. Railways usually mean the hassle of level crossing. However, there will be no crossing anywhere on this railway. An underpass will be built somewhere to prevent accidents at the crossing.
According to Bangladesh Railway sources, the 23-kilometer flyover will be constructed in three parts. In the first part (Viaduct-1 or V-1) from Shampur in Dhaka to Kuchiamora in Sirajdikhan upazila of Munshiganj it is 16.7 km. The rivers Buriganga and Dhaleshwari fall in this way. Besides, flyovers are being constructed in this part due to low lands.
The second part (V-2) falls under the Mawa section near the Padma Bridge. In this part, the Padma Bridge has been constructed at a height much higher than the road. In line with the road, 2.58 kilometers is the flying railway.
In the third part (V-3) flyover railway will be constructed in Jazira. Roads have been built with much elevation in Jazira part like Mawa. This flyover was originally built in line with the Padma Bridge. In keeping with the road, 4.03 km flyover will be constructed in this part also.
100 broad gauge coaches
Under the project 162 km main line and 43.22 km loop line will be constructed. 100 broad gauge train coaches will be procured for this railway. 2,426 acres of land will be acquired for proper implementation of the project.
The railway will cross the river Padma rail connection means great work. The work of Padma Rail Link has spread to Dhaka, Narayanganj, Munshiganj, Faridpur, Gopalganj, Narail and Jessore districts. Long railway bridges are being constructed on several rivers for railways under the project.
The Padma rail link will cross the Buriganga river. For this, a 400-meter-long separate railway bridge will be constructed over the river Buriganga. Besides, 500 meters long railway bridge will be constructed on Dhaleshwari river in Munshiganj, 800 meters on Arial Khan river, 1200 meters on Madhumati river in Lohagarh of Narail, 100 meters on Nabganga, 80 meters on Jessore Bhaurab and 100 meters on Chitra river in Khulna. Of these projects 56 major bridges, 263 minor bridges (culverts and underpasses) will be constructed.
Train speed 120 km
Ballast means the railway of Bangladesh. Granite stone is used in this railway. This route has steel slippers and wooden ties. The reason for giving stones on the railway line is so that the train does not derail. However, there will be no stone in the flyover of Padma Bridge rail link. The train will be able to run at a speed of 120 kmph on this state-of-the-art flying railway.
Level crossings are not a long way off
There are 96 approved and 261 unauthorized level crossings in the western part of Bangladesh Railway. There are gatekeepers in only 221 of these level crossings. As a result, 1,026 level crossings remain unprotected. As a result, accidents are constantly happening and deaths are increasing. For example, at a level crossing near the Kuril flyover, a pedestrian is killed after being cut off by a train most of the time. There is no gatekeeper.
However, there is no level crossing on the Dhaka-Jessore 162 km railway line. On the one hand, such an accident will not happen, on the other hand, there will be no congestion on the road. To avoid crossing, culverts, underpasses and railway overpasses will be constructed. Gandaria III dual gauge line from Dhaka, overhead station at Bhanga junction, underpass at Titipara in Kamalapur and new underpass at Tularampur in Narail. Such an initiative is to make the railway 100 percent safe.
Progress is 54 percent
Work on the Padma Bridge rail link project is progressing fast. The physical progress of the project is 54 percent and the financial progress is 54.9 percent. The construction of the railway is going on in three parts.
Turning to the ground, it can be seen that railway bridges have been built all over the place including filling the soil. Besides, the work of Mawa station has also become visible. The progress of Dhaka-Mawa section is 50.5%. Besides, the progress of Jessore from Mawa-Bhanga 6 and Bhanga is 48 percent.
Abu Yusuf Mohammad Shamim, Deputy Project Director (Way and Work) of Padma Bridge Rail Link Project, told Jago News that 182 km of main line would be constructed under the project.
More than 23 kilometers of flyovers will be constructed on this railway. Construction of flyovers is expensive. Even then, for various reasons, there is no way out except the construction of flyovers. For example, low land in project area Dhaka-Buriganga-Keraniganj and Munshiganj area. For these reasons flyovers will be built. The flyover will be ballastless.
Regarding the level crossing, he said, there will be no level crossing in this way. That is why railway overpass will be constructed somewhere and underpass will be constructed again. Besides, railway bridges will be constructed on several rivers including Buriganga and Madhumati. After overcoming all the challenges, the work of the railway is progressing fast.
It is learned that the total cost of the project is Tk 39,247.69 crore. Of this, China’s debt is Tk 21,038.69 crore and government funding is Tk 16,210 crore. Work on the project started in January 2016. Full work is expected to be completed by July 2024.