A country almost half the size of the UK is set for a transport revolution as part of a £16bn mega-project.
Bangladesh is to see 47 new bridges, 27 new motorways and three new tunnels built as part of plans to improve the Asian country’s transport network.
The Bangladesh Bridges Authority (BBA) plans will see a whopping 77 projects undertaken over the next 30 years as it hopes to improve connectivity.
But critics have been sceptical over its viability given the country’s recent economic downturn.
As many as 13 of the projects have been earmarked for completion by 2035 with those projects linking the east and west of the country which are separated by the Brahmaputra river.
Priority work includes plans to build two bridges over the Padma River on the Paturia-Goalanda and Pabna-Rajbari roads, three bridges over the Meghna River Shariatpur-Chandpur, Gazaria-Munshiganj and Bhola-Lakshmipur roads and a tunnel beneath the Jamuna River.
The Jamal River Tunnel will be built between Balashi Ghat in Gaibandha and Bahadurabad in Jamalpur.
Once those projects are complete, the BBA plans to construct an elevated expressway, an inner elevated circular road, and a subway within its capital city, Dhaka.
It is hoped the project will reduce traffic congestion and streamline vehicle movements from various regions of the country.
Bangladeshi authorities are said to be in consultation with a Spanish company over the plans ahead of a final proposal which will be released in June.
Monjur Hossain, secretary of the BBA, said a list of the need for bridges and related infrastructure in Bangladesh over the next 30 years had been compiled, with all projects to be carried out in phases, with feasibility studies already in progress for certain projects and pre-feasibility studies underway for others.
However, critics such as Mustafa Mujeri, the former Director General of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS), say it may be better if the project remains on the drawing board.
He told Bangladeshi publication, TBS News: “It is a very ambitious plan. Considering the current economic situation, it might be better not to implement such a plan.
“If projects of this magnitude are implemented, they will exert significant pressure on the economy. In this scenario, new projects should be undertaken only after the completion of all the mega-projects currently under implementation.”