The government of Bangladesh has taken initiatives to construct Dhaka-Chittagong Express Railway. By this proposed 231.9 kilometer new railway, trains will first go to Moynamati in Comilla via Fatullah of Narayanganj and Daudkandi and Mohanpur and then run parallel with the existing Comilla-Chittagong track.
On the proposed route, a new 110.9 km track will have to be laid from Dhaka to Comilla.
On 8 October 2015, Bangladesh Railway gave a presentation before the Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina about the detailed plan of the Express Railway.
Around 3,000 acres of land will have to be acquired and a supply of 100MW electricity will have to be ensured for the project so that 10 trains can operate simultaneously at speeds of 160 km/hr.
The express railway project will cost $4 billion and will take five years to complete.
The existing track from Dhaka to Chittagong is 320.79 km long. The new route would shorten the distance by 90 km and the traveling time by three to four hours.
The China Railway Engineering Group has helped the ministry to complete a feasibility study.
Earlier on 11 August 2014, Chinese Ambassador Li Jun and Bangladesh Railway Minister Mazibul Hoque signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the construction of the Dhaka-Chittagong express railway.
There will be 10 new stations in Narayanganj, Daudkandi, Mohanpur, Mainamati, Laksam, Mazar, Kalidaha, Mirsharai, Dharmopur, Salimpur on this track.
Dhaka-Laksam : 110.9 Kilometer (9.7 km bridge – 8.7%)
Laksam-Chittagong : 121 Kilometer (9.1 km bridge – 7.5%)
Total : 231.9 Kilometer (18.8 km bridge – 8.1%)
Besides express railway, conversion of Dhaka-Chittagong 321 km existing single line railway to double line is near to complete. A 2nd big railway bridge already been built on ‘Vairab’ river.
A 128 km long new rail line is under construction that will connect Chittagong-Cox’s Bazar-Gundum.
Construction of 86.87 km Khulna-Mongla rail line is also started. In this route, the construction of 5.13-kilomer railway bridge over the river Rupsha has already started.
A contract has been signed with a British company DP Rail Ltd. on 20 December 2016, to setting up 240 km new railway line between Dhaka-Payra Sea Port which will cost around USD 7.5 billion.
225 km long rail line construction between Dhaka-Vanga-Narail-Jessor via Padma Bridge hope to start soon. Land acquisition work is already started in this regard. USD 3.14 billion contract was signed by Bangladesh Railway and China Railway Group Ltd. on August 8, 2016. Construction is expected to complete by June 2022.
To reduce rail pressure on Bangabandhu Setu (Jamuna Bridge), construction of a new rail bridge is approved in ECNEC meeting on 7 December 2016 which will cost about Tk. 9,734 crore. It will be completed on December 2023.