Locomotive crisis stalls container movement from Ctg Port to Dhaka ICD
As per a 17 August railway internal report, only two locomotives were available out of the 13 needed to operate container and oil rakes on the Chattogram-Dhaka line
Highlights
- Only 2 locomotives are running on the Chattogram–Dhaka line, against 13 needed
- Over 1,200 TEUs are stuck in port yards, some since 10 August
- Port yard capacity expanded, but rail shortage causes congestion
- Exporters fear shipment delays and cancelled orders; importers face higher costs
- Railway promises 2 more engines this week, with new ones due by year-end
A severe shortage of locomotives in Bangladesh Railway has left container transport from Chattogram Port to Dhaka nearly paralysed, with more than 1,200 TEUs stranded in port yards.
As per a 17 August railway internal report, only two locomotives were available out of the 13 needed to operate container and oil rakes on the Chattogram-Dhaka line.
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One engine was assigned to a container train and the other to a special army service, leaving none for at least eight fully loaded rakes waiting at the port and nearby stations.
Some rakes have been stuck since 10 August, meaning containers loaded more than a week earlier remain unmoved. Altogether, 1,234 TEUs were reported stranded in port yards, according to the report.
Railway and port insiders said Chattogram Port requires at least six container trains a day – three each way between Chattogram and Dhaka – to keep import and export flows on track. But with the current shortage, at present, only four trains are running, two in each direction.
The shortage has also disrupted oil tank wagons and general cargo rakes, leaving several trains cancelled. On 20 August alone, two container trains scheduled to carry export goods were cancelled due to lack of locomotives, worsening congestion inside the port and delaying shipments to the Inland Container Depot (ICD) in Kamalapur, Dhaka.
The backlog has triggered a chain reaction: slow container clearance is choking yard space, disrupting vessel handling and stacking operations.
Port upgrades, but rail lags behind
The crisis comes just as the Chattogram Port Authority (CPA) announced a major expansion of yard space and operational efficiency. Over the past year, the CPA has renovated existing yards and built new ones at the old auction yard, vehicle storage zone, baggage shed, and the X and Y sheds.
As a result, capacity has risen from 53,518 TEUs to nearly 59,000 TEUs. "With the added space, the port can now handle 47,000-48,000 TEUs without disruption," CPA Secretary Omar Faruk said in a press statement on 21 August.
He added that vessel handling had improved significantly. The number of container ships handled daily has increased from 10 to 12-13, and vessel turnaround time has dropped to just 2.58 days.
"Ships at the outer anchorage now wait zero to two days at most before berthing," he said.
CPA expects total capacity to reach 62,000 TEUs once ongoing yard construction is completed later this year.
But without rail support, the gains risk being undone. Around 12,000 containers are currently idle inside the port – 10,000 marked for auction and 2,000 awaiting transport to Dhaka ICDs – well above normal levels at Bangladesh's busiest seaport, according to the statement.
Stakeholders and experts warn that if the bottleneck persists, yard congestion will intensify and logistics costs will also rise, eroding the competitive advantage of Bangladeshi exports in international markets.
Importers, meanwhile, will face higher delivery costs and longer delays, which will ultimately feed into consumer prices.
Traders voice concern
Exporters said the biggest risk is missed deadlines in global supply chains. Many foreign buyers operate on strict schedules and penalties are imposed if goods are not shipped on time.
"A delay of even a few days can lead to cancelled orders," said Belayet Hossain, an RMG exporter. "If locomotives are not made available quickly, the reputation of our exporters will suffer."
Importers, too, are worried. With containers sitting in port yards longer than usual, they must pay higher storage charges.
"Every extra day a container sits idle an extra cost adds up," said Shahidul Islam, an importer of industrial raw materials. "The railway must act before this becomes a full-blown crisis."
Industry insiders argue that deploying additional locomotives on a priority basis is the only immediate solution. In the long run, Bangladesh Railway must expand its fleet and improve maintenance capacity if it wants to support the growth of Chattogram Port, which now handles over 90% of the country's external trade.
Railway officials acknowledge the shortage but say the situation reflects a long-standing lack of investment in locomotives and maintenance.
Engines are often taken out of service for repairs, leaving too few to meet demand on the Chattogram–Dhaka corridor, which handles the bulk of the country's container traffic.
Muhammad Subaktagin, general manager of Bangladesh Railway East Zone, however, assured that two more engines will be added this week to transport containers from the port.
"By the end of the year, more new engines will arrive and we are hopeful the problem will be solved soon," he added.
