Metro Rail and Its Impact on the Economy

 

The quickest, most popular, and most advanced urban transportation is the Metrorail. One of the world's most populous megacities is Dhaka. The Metrorail project was a prompt solution to Dhaka's traffic jam challenge. For that, we are grateful to the current administration. Bangladesh's Metrorail project allowed the country to join the modern transportation network, marking a significant accomplishment for its citizens after 51 years of independence. The nation's economy suffers tremendously from traffic bottlenecks. An additional $4.4 billion, or more than 15% of the nation's total budget, is spent on traffic congestion in Dhaka city each year, according to a 2018 BUET survey. Furthermore, as per the 2017 World Bank report, 3.8 million working hours are lost every day. The country's economy has suffered greatly as a result of the reduction in working hours. These negative effects will become positive ones because of the Metrorail. Experts believe through the survey results, once MRT Line-6 is operational, it will save Tk 8.38 crore in travel time and Tk 1.18 crore in vehicle operating cost per day, saving Tk 3489.40 crore annually. As a result, it will play a positive role in the country’s economic development and increase the GDP growth rate. The country's eighth five-year plan states that the public sector spending priorities—which include development expenditure, healthcare priorities, education, power and energy, transportation, agriculture, as well as rural infrastructure and integrated water resource management—have increased in terms of GDP, with the goal rising from just 8.4% of GDP in 2010 to 17% of GDP in FY 2025. This increase is due to the exclusion of social security and non-development expenditure. The project's execution will demonstrate Bangladesh's remarkable economic progress and its viability as a market for foreign trade and investment. Through the project's automatic country branding, trade and investment volumes are expected to rise, and national tax revenue will rise, boosting the GDP of this nation.  These talks provide a framework for how Bangladesh's economy could profit in the long run from the metro rail project, one of the nation's most significant development initiatives. We can maintain this growth in the upcoming years if we can expand upon the advantages this project offers.