The Dhaka Circular Railway () is a proposed orbital suburban rail system in Bangladesh which is expected to serve

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

and

Greater Dhaka Greater Dhaka (''Bengali'': বৃহত্তর ঢাকা) is the Megalopolis including and surrounding the Bangladeshi capital city of Dhaka, which has grown into one of the world's largest megacities, and shows a very rapid rate of expans ...

once completed, and reduce traffic marginally in the city. The project is being considered for investment by

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

and implemented by

Bangladesh Railway Bangladesh Railway () is the state-owned rail transport agency of Bangladesh. It operates and maintains all railways in the country, and is overseen by the Directorate General of Bangladesh Railway. The Bangladesh Railway is governed by the Mi ...

Background

A survey conducted by a Chinese firm has determined the feasibility of an approximately 81-kilometer rail route in greater Dhaka for a circular railway. The project draft outlines plans for 24 stations along the route, with Tongi station serving as the central hub. Notably, 11 of these stations are designated as 'transfer stations,' linking to other modes of transport such as MRT, BRT, and the subway. Bangladesh Railway, under a public-private partnership, is currently executing the 80.89-kilometer circular rail line project from Tongi station through Demra, Chasara, Babubazar, Gabtoli, Birulia, and Dhour, back to Tongi, following a feasibility study. The estimated cost for this project is US$8.4 billion.

Criticisms and concerns

Concerns have been raised about the project's utility, given government plans to develop metro lines and a circular road in the same corridor earmarked for the circular railway. Because of the densely populated nature of Dhaka, attempting to construct circular, subway and metro rail simultaneously is deemed nearly impossible. Critics highlighted the challenges of investing vast resources and suggested that feasibility studies conducted by the railway and bridges division for subway and circular rail projects may ultimately result in wastage of resources.

References

{{reflist Rail transport in Dhaka Proposed rail infrastructure in Bangladesh Railway lines in Bangladesh