A safety audit of the Dhaka Metro Rail has identified 27 critical bearing pads and cracks of varying severity across 46 piers, raising fresh concerns over the long-term structural integrity of the capital’s flagship transport network.
Road Transport and Bridges Minister Shaikh Rabiul Alam disclosed the findings in Parliament on Wednesday in response to a query from Cumilla-9 MP Abul Kalam.
The minister stated that while not all 730 bearing pads along the route were compromised, 147 exhibited minor defects, 297 suffered from installation workmanship issues, and 27 were classified as critical. Additionally, the audit committee detected structural cracks across 46 support piers.
In response, the government has commenced remedial work. Steel brackets have been installed at 10 high-risk locations to prevent pad displacement, and settlement markers have been attached to the 27 critical pads ahead of a complete replacement programme scheduled for completion by 30 November.
Furthermore, the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET) will be appointed as structural consultants to assess the pier cracks and recommend repair protocols. Structural crack gauges are also being installed at 102 locations to monitor structural movement.
Three days of disruption fuel reliability concerns
The safety disclosures follow three consecutive days of operational disruptions, frustrating commuters and raising questions over system reliability.
On Wednesday morning, services were delayed by 30 minutes. A day earlier, a train stopped twice mid-journey for 5 to 7 minutes, while on Monday, operations were suspended for nearly 40 minutes after a teenager trespassed onto the tracks.
Rumel Islam arrived at Motijheel Station on Wednesday morning with his two children, who attend school in Uttara. “The display screen indicated a 30-minute delay. Although we eventually reached our destination, my children missed their first class,” he told The Times of Bangladesh.
Metro Rail Police Inspector (Operations) Mohammad Mohsin stated that an unidentified wire was discovered hanging over the overhead catenary system at the Secretariat Station at 7:10 am, prompting an immediate safety shutdown until workers cleared the line at 7:30 am.
However, Dhaka Mass Transit Company Limited (DMTCL) Director Md Nazrul Islam attributed Wednesday’s delay to fallen tree branches on the catenary wire, adding that a single delayed train creates a knock-on effect across the 16 trains operating along the 20-kilometre corridor.
