Construction of the proposed Light Railway Project (LRT) worth USD 1.6 bn will begin by end next year, Megalopolis and Western Development Ministry Secretary Nihal Rupasinghe said yesterday. He said the feasibility study of one of the railway tracks has been concluded and the pre-operational services for its construction will commence this November. This railway track is funded through JAICA by the Japanese government.
This railway track will operate from the Malabe multimodal transport hub to Pettah with 17 stations and trains operating every six minutes.The LRT system which includes seven railway tracks will be one of the largest funded projects in the country and will cover the whole of Colombo and its suburbs.
The trains operating in the LRT can be extended by adding more compartments to facilitate more passengers if and when needed.
Ministry Additional Secretary Madhawa Waidyaratne said that the Ministry expects to construct the other six railway tracks under three packages as a Private Public Partnership.
The Ministry will select six foreign companies out of 17 that have submitted tenders for the project. The Ministry has allowed those companies until the end of February 2019 to submit their bids for the project.
Waidyaratne explained that one of the lines with a total distance of 33km would be constructed from Ragama to Kirulapone via Kadawatha, Fort and Bambalapitiya. The “Green Line”, 28.3km in length, would be constructed from Kelaniya to Moratuwa via Dematagoda, Borella, Narahenpita and Nugegoda. 22.3 km long “Blue Line” would be constructed from Hunupitiya Tyre Junction to Kottawa via Koswatte.
Add new comment