Urban planners suggest 30% reduction in metro fares

The Institute for Planning and Development (IPD) has suggested reducing the fare of the metro rail, to be launched from Dhaka's Uttara to Agargaon tomorrow, by at least 30% and ensuring a 50% fare for the lower middle class, the minimum income group, and students.

Apart from this, the institute, which is involved in planning, development research and policy analysis, has also suggested providing free metro transport for children of up to five years of age.

These suggestions came up at a virtual event, "Metrorail for Sustainable Planning of Capital City Dhaka: Perspectives and Way Forward", on Monday, with the goal of making the metro rail people-friendly.

In his keynote paper on the occasion, IPD Executive Director Professor Adil Mohammed Khan said that 3.5 to 4 crore trips are made in Dhaka every day. The introduction of the metro rail is therefore a landmark step.

The urban planner said that efforts should be made to ensure that the metro rail fare is affordable for common people. If the fare is high, passengers will not be as available as expected.

He emphasised the formulation of a proper policy strategy and its implementation so that the benefits of the metro rail can be enjoyed by people of all income groups and overall public welfare can be ensured.

He called for the introduction of a multi-modal, integrated communication system at the metro stations and creating a walkable environment around the stations with emphasis on pedestrians.

Planner Professor Akter Mahmood, an advisor to the IPD, said, "The metro rail will bring Dhaka residents a new taste of smooth public transport. For the planned development around the metro rail, small plot consolidation or land consolidation needs to be done."

He requested metro users to refrain from putting up posters, making stations untidy, and a littering of waste here, there, and everywhere once the metro rail system gets underway.

At the event, Afsana Haque, a communications expert and metro rail-related Transit Oriented Development (TOD) project consultant, said that 60-70% of Dhaka's people use public transport.

"Among public transport, bus fares are as low as Tk2.5 per kilometre, but metro rail fares are as low as Tk20. In such a situation, those who travel short distances may not be encouraged to use the metro," she added.

Ashraful Islam, urban planner of Rajdhani Unnayan Kartripakkha, said that to make the metro rail effective, it is necessary to launch bus services in an integrated way alongside the metro and keep adequate pedestrian facilities and car parking facilities at the stations.

"Besides, to decentralise Dhaka, the regional cities in close proximity to the capital should be developed with fast communication systems," he added.

Planner Mohammad Ariful Islam, a director of the IPD, also spoke on the occasion.