Dhaka Elevated Expressway

Bangladesh is a developing country. Day by day the improvements of our country are really appreciable. The Dhaka elevated expressway is one of them. The Dhaka Elevated Expressway is an all-elevated toll road in Bangladesh. This is the country's first elevated expressway, partially opened in 2023. It's total length is 19.73 kilometers (12.26 mi).It connects the Dhaka airport with the Farmgate area in Tejgaon. Its construction aims to enhance traffic capacity within and around Dhaka city by improving connectivity between the northern part of the city and the central, southern, and south-eastern parts. 

The four-lane Dhaka Elevated Expressway route begins near Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at Kawla and runs alongside the railway line through Tejgaon, Moghbazar, Kamalapur, and ends at Kutub Khali near Jatrabari along the Dhaka–Chittagong Highway.

The expressway is toll-operated and accessible to eight types of vehicles, including buses, minibusses, sedans, SUVs, specific trucks, and pickups. However, motorcycles, CNG-run auto-rickshaws, three-wheelers, bicycles, and pedestrians are not permitted on the exexpressway. Tolls for entering the expressway are collected in four categories. 

1) Private cars, microbuses (16 seats) and light trucks (below three tonnes) toll charge is 80 Tk, 

2) Buses and mini-buses (16 seats and above) toll charge is 160 Tk, 

3) Medium-sized trucks (up to six wheels) toll charge is 320 Tk, 

4) Large trucks (more than six wheels) toll charge is 400 Tk.

The Dhaka Elevated Expressway project commenced in 2011. On 15 December 2013, the Bangladesh Bridge Authority signed a revised agreement with the First Dhaka Elevated Expressway Company Limited, the investment company of the project.

This project is being implemented under the public–private partnership model, with the Thailand-based Italian-Thai Development holding 51 percent of the shares, China Shandong International Economic & Technical Cooperation Group holding 34 percent, and Sinohydro Corporation Limited holding 15 percent. The project is being executed in three phases. Phase one spans from Kawla near Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport to Banani Railway Station, phase two stretches from Banani Railway Station to Moghbazar railway crossing, and phase three extends from Moghbazar rail crossing to Kutub Khali on the Dhaka–Chittagong highway. The total cost of the project, including main construction cost of the expressway, land acquisition, resettlement of the displaced, relocation of utility service lines, and consultation, amounts to ৳138.57 billion (US$1.3 billion).

 On 2 September 2023, the 11.5-kilometre (7.1 mi) Airport–Farmgate segment was inaugurated by the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and opened to traffic on 3 September.

On 18 September 2023, the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation inaugurated a bus service on the Airport–Farmgate route via the expressway.

On 20 March 2024, the Kawran Bazar ramp of the expressway in front of the Bangladesh Film Development Corporation (BFDC) was opened for transport movement.

As of March 2024, the expressway has a total of 16 entry and exit ramps. Now it has 15 entry and 16 exit ramps.

Entryramps                       

Southbound                                     

Entry ramps for southbound vehicles are situated at Kawla near Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport, in front of the Army Golf Club on Airport Road, and at Kuril along Pragati Avenue.                                        

Northbound                                          

To get on the expressway from the south, the entrances to the expressway are the north and south lanes of Bijoy Sarani overpass and Banani railway station on Kemal Ataturk Avenue in Banani.                                                  

  Exitramps                          

Southbound                                     

When heading south, exit ramps are situated at Kemal Ataturk Avenue in Banani, Mohakhali Bus Terminal, Indira Road in Farmgate, and Karwan Bazar in front of Bangladesh Film Development Corporation.                                 

Northbound                                     

When traveling north from the south, the four exit ramps are located at the Mohakhali Bus Terminal, the Airport Road opposite Kemal Ataturk Avenue, Kuril Bishwa Road, and the third terminal of Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport.

So we can say in Bangladesh, the Dhaka Elevated Expressway is not just an engineering marvel but also a symbol of the country’s aspirations towards modernization and sustainable urban development. Now people should maintain all rules & regulations. Only then can it be a beneficial good project for all classes of people in daily life.