Test run on Dhaka-Mawa section of Padma Bridge rail link begins

Test run of a "track car" on the Dhaka-Mawa section of the Padma Bridge Rail Link Project was successfully conducted today.

The experimental train left Dhaka's Gendaria railway station at 9:30am on Saturday and reached Munshiganj's Mawa end in 2 hours.

The train arrived at Mawa at around 11:30am, sources at Sheikh Russel Cantonment confirmed.

Throughout the journey, an observation team situated within the rail car diligently scrutinised the rail line's integrity, identifying potential faults and deviations at various points and stations encompassing the Dhaka-Mawa section.

Later, the "track car" left Mawa for Bhanga end around 12pm.

Padma Bridge Rail Link Project Manager 2 Brig Gen Jamiul Rahman said, "Today we conducted a trial run covering a distance of 81 kilometres. We started from Gendaria at 9:17am and travelled to Mawa station via Jurain-Aliganj. After a short interval in Mawa, the track car left for Bhanga station."

"The trial run has been immensely productive, providing us with essential data to fine-tune our operations.

"Although I cannot confirm the exact date of the project's inauguration right now, I can share that next Monday the railway minister is expected to visit the railway track for the purposes of witnessing its firsthand progress," he added.

Railways Minister Md Nurul Islam Sujan last month told reporters that a trial run of train movement from Kamalapur to Bhanga via Padma Bridge is expected to commence in the first week of September.

On 4 April, a seven-coach special train became the first to travel on the newly-constructed 42-km railway track on Padma Bridge, from Bhanga railway station to Mawa on the eastern end of the Padma Bridge.