Elevated Expressway’s Airport-Farmgate section to open in September: Quader

Airport to Farmgate segment of Dhaka Elevated Expressway project will be opened to traffic in September next.

Road transport and bridges minister Obaidul Quader said this during his inspection of the expressway's Kawla to Tejgaon section on Saturday, reports UNB.

The construction of the project is divided into three phases, and currently, the overall progress stands at 63.20 per cent, he said.

"Once the Farmgate section is operational, it will significantly reduce traffic congestion in the capital," said Quader.

He further said that a feasibility study is currently underway for the construction of an outer circular road around the city.

"The Awami League government has taken the lead in developing key infrastructures such as the Bangabandhu Tunnel, Metro Rail, Padma Bridge, and the Chittagong Expressway," he said.

The 20-kilometer stretch of the expressway, spanning from Kawla to Kutubkhali on the Dhaka-Chattagram highway, is being constructed through a public-private partnership.

The project has a total budget of Tk 89.4 billion (8,940 crore), with the Bangladesh government contributing Tk 24.13 billion.

Responding to questions about the visit of the US and European Union delegations to Bangladesh, Quader said that the US delegation is not arriving for election-related matters but to assess the situation of Rohingyas.

On the other hand, the EU delegation is coming to see how their teams will observe the upcoming elections, he said.