Dhaka Bus Rapid Transit Plc

The Project will establish efficient, cost-effective, environment friendly, sustainable and safe Urban Transport System (UTS) through construction of 20 kilometer Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) along the Gazipur-Tongi-Uttara-Airport corridor. This pilot project provides a holistic solution for integrated urban mobility, bearing a demonstration effect as no modern mass-transit system exists in Bangladesh yet. Linkages: The proposed project will contribute to Bangladesh national priority to organize urbanization and upgrade city infrastructures to mitigate climate change, to improve living standards, and, to strengthen economic growth. It complies with Dhaka's urban transport sector priorities by following some of the recommendations of the Strategic Transport Plan, approved by the government in 2008. The Project is also well aligned with ADB recent strong focus on urban transport, as outlined in ADB’s Sustainable Transport Initiative Operational Plan. The project will ensure close coordination with other development partners’ activities in the urban transport sector. The selected corridor for the project will connect with the BRT corridor to be undertaken by World Bank, leading ultimately to the implementation of a 42 km mass-transit corridor, from Gazipur to Dhaka city center and beyond. It is therefore crucial to coordinate both projects to ensure full technical, operational and institutional integration. With the ADB section of the corridor having more chances to be implemented first, due to easier institutional and technical features, its demonstration effect will ease the implementation of the World Bank section. There will also be close coordination with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) which recently undertook the implementation of Metro (MRT Line-6). A strong potential synergy can be found, notably in capacity building and necessary organizational developments to improve the management of Dhaka’s UTS.