The Padma Bridge, still under construction, is a multipurpose road-rail bridge across the mighty Padma River. It is considered the most challenging construction project in the history of Bangladesh. Once completed, the bridge will directly and indirectly connect the southwestern region of the country to the northern and eastern regions. The two-level steel truss bridge, with a span of 150 meters, a total length of 6,150 meters, and a width of 18.10 meters, will be the largest bridge in the Padma-Brahmaputra-Meghna river basins in terms of both span and total length. It will feature a four-lane highway on the upper level and a single-track railway on the lower level. The Padma Multipurpose Bridge Project has acquired 1,062.14 hectares of land. Approximately 44,000 SQ. km, or 29% of the total area of Bangladesh, will directly benefit from the project. The bridge is expected to significantly contribute to the social, economic, and industrial development of the country, benefiting over 30 million people.
The Government of Bangladesh is funding the total cost of the project after the World Bank refused to finance it. The construction firm China Major Engineering Company Ltd has been tasked with executing the project. The 6.15 km bridge, with an estimated cost of 91.72 billion BDT (US$1.1 billion), will connect 21 southern districts to the capital, Dhaka. Construction work began on 7th December 2014, and most of the project has already been completed. It is expected to be operational soon. The Padma Bridge, once inaugurated, is projected to boost Bangladesh's GDP by as much as 1.2 percent.
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