Commercial passenger trains are starting to run on Padma Bridge from today. Sundarban and Benapole Express will run initially. Through this, new rail connections are being established with the capital Dhaka in the south and south-western parts of the country.
On Wednesday, the Sundarban Express train will leave Khulna at 9:45 pm and cross the Padma bridge to reach Dhaka at 5:00 am. Besides, Benapole Express (795) on November 2 as the second commercial train. The train will leave Benapole at 1 PM and reach Dhaka at 8:45 PM.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the railway on Padma Bridge on October 10. Commercial trains were supposed to run on this route after 7 days of inauguration, but trains are running after 14 days. Besides, the railway ministry has reduced the high fare that was proposed on this railway, thinking about the public.
According to the new fares, the fare for a comfortable chair in an intercity train from Khulna to Dhaka is Tk 500, AC chair fare is Tk 955, AC seat fare is Tk 1,145 and AC berth fare is Tk 1,720.
Chief Commercial Officer of Railways Shah Alam Kiran Shishir said that the trains of the new route will run through platforms 8, 9 and 10 of Kamalapur station. As promised by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, preparations for running five more pairs (10) trains from Dhaka to Bhanga via Padma Bridge have been completed. The trains will run on the Dhaka-Bhanga route in the second week of November.
Meanwhile, there is a proposal to run a train from Rajshahi to Dhaka. Now the Madhumati Express train runs from Rajshahi to Bhanga. There are plans to take it to Dhaka over the Padma Bridge. Railways is also thinking of running a commuter train on the Dhaka-Padma Bridge-Rajbari route.
