1) The document discusses the potential for implementing a water transportation system connecting the Hatirjheel, Gulshan, Banani, and Baridhara lakes in Dhaka, Bangladesh. 2) It provides background on the Hatirjheel project which revived one of the lakes, and argues water transportation could provide a cheap public transit option while reducing environmental impacts. 3) However, challenges include coordinating different agencies, managing waste disposal, and potential negative effects on water quality and wildlife from increased usage. The document analyzes this proposal's costs and benefits.

1. Prepared By-
Mahjabeen, Sadia, Kashfia, Zakaria
and Sumaya
Students of Department of Urban and
Regional Planning, BUET

2. -- 16th mega city and 9th most populous city of the world.
-- supports about 7.2% of total population and 30% of total urban population.

3. -- Traffic Congestion.
-- Public Transport Vs. Private Transport.
-- Supply Vs. Demand.

4. -- Glorious History of Waterbodies and wetlands

5. -- Hatirjheel Project : a story of revival
-- Lack of public transport system at Hatirjheel area.

6. -- Inland Waterway Transportation System through Hatirjheel-Gulshan-Banani-
Baridhara lakes.

7.  To understand the potential of Hatirjheel-Gulshan-Banani-Baridhara lake
areas to be used for water way transportation option
 To explore the benefits of providing waterway transport facility and
 To investigate the feasibility of implementing waterway transport approach.

8. 1. Hatirjheel Project is an example of successful project which helped to retrieve
the lake.
2. The lake is surrounded by different areas of the city which can serve
numerous areas and a large number of people will be benefitted.
3. Water transport will provide cheap transportation solution to the city
dwellers.
4. Environment friendly transport solution.
5. Public transport system on the lake
6. Inland water transport ensures equality

9. 1. Water transport may hamper the water quality.
2. People may deteriorate the lake area.
3. The flora and fauna might be affected

10. 1. Traffic volume on roads will be decreased
2. Travel time will be reduced.
3. Reduce hassle of people since they can move from one place to another very
fast and they will not have to wait in the traffic congestion.
4. Good for the health of people.
5. Enhance the way of recreation while travelling.
6. Enhance connectivity of the city
7. Different agencies and stakeholders are interested to implement the project.
8. City dwellers are willing to avail the water transport service.

11. 1. Different agencies are responsible for the lake and Hatirjheel project.
Working under one umbrella will be a difficult task for different stakeholders.
2. Which agency will take the authority of operation, maintenance and
management will be a hard question to be addressed.
3. Travel solution up to the landing station will be another aspect to be
considered
4. Waste Disposal system, environmental protection these will be crucial factors
to be considered.
5. More people will be attracted to be migrated into Dhaka if they find smooth
inland waterway transportation system.

12. 1. Mobility and Transportation.
2. Reduction of Traffic Volume on Roads.
3. Public Transport Solution
4. Travel in a Cheaper Rate.
5. Health Benefit
6. Environment Friendly Travel Solution
7. Ensure Equality Among All
8. Greater Attention to the Eco System of the Water Bodies
9. Connectivity of the City

13. -- Societies have always been set up near water
-- In USA and Great Britain, waterways have been developed and integrated
into a world-class transportation system.
-- Usually, people used the waterways for travelling to another country
-- Later, worked as an instrument of country's economic development
-- After that, inland waterway developed in the city
-- During 1700s, the British government passed the Navigation Acts
-- It provided the design of tax collection through which governments
flourished
-- The emergence of containerization in the late 1950s dramatically increased
the potentials of waterway transportation
-- It also became a driving force for further improvement of waterway

14. In France:
-- Waterway network is mainly based on its rivers
-- Many of the low-capacity canals are being raised to a standard
-- Waterway has been developed along streets also
Figure: Waterway Transportation in FranceFigure: Waterway Transportation along a street of
Paris

15. In Netherlands:
-- The extensive canal systems based on large natural rivers are used as
waterway
-- A few canals like Amsterdam-Rhine canal serves as a transshipment
ports
-- All waterways are used for carrying goods and people
Figure: Waterway Transportation in Netherlands

16. In Thailand:
-- Three different types of boat in operations:
o Express bloats
o Ferry boats
o Long-tailed boats
-- Different types of boats serves different purposes
Figure: Waterway Transportation in Thailand

17.  The National Strategy for Accelerated Poverty Reduction (NSAPR), 2005
-- emphasized upon preserving the navigation of country boats
-- the proposed measures are meant to be self-financed by the poor communities
themselves
-- This clearly limits the impact of the Government commitment
 National Integrated Multi-modal Transport Policy, 2013
-- proposed an efficient, safe and cheap Integrated Water Transport (IWT)
-- special attention on dredging, encouragement of mechanization of
country boats
-- two goals: (i) to introduce door-to-door services using IWT; (ii) to foster a
high level of rural mobility using rural water transport
 National Water Policy, 2001
-- recognized that IWT is of substantial economic importance in Bangladesh
-- minimum water flows in designated streams will be maintained for
navigation after diversion of water for drinking and municipal purposes.
-- water development projects should cause minimal disruption to
navigation and, where necessary, adequate mitigation measures should
be taken.
-- dredging and other suitable measures would be undertaken, wherever
needed to maintain navigational capability

18.  National Policy for Ports, Ocean Shipping and Inland Water Transport, 2000
-- aimed to ensure that Bangladesh has a safe and efficient inland and
coastal water transport system, able to support the national
development aspirations.
-- provides a comprehensive guidance for the management and
administration of IWT, its infrastructure, services, safety and environment,
technology and financing.
 Wetland Conservation Act, 2000
-- straightly forbids to conduct any activity that may cause hamper to the
natural water body
-- But if it can be verified that the development activity is being performed
for the greater welfare of the mass people, then the respective authority
may allow it and provide the permission to carry on the work.
 Inland Shipping Act, 2005
-- every inland shipping owner must take permit from the respective
authority, otherwise he will be penalized
-- The crew and other related people with shipping must have professional
certificates and necessary trainings
-- strongly prohibits the discharge of disinfected sewage in the inland water
body

19. -- Road congestion can be lessened
-- Less expensive than road transport as the unit transport costs are smaller
than for both road and railway transport
-- A country can be economically flourished
-- Easy and convenient for freight transport
-- Results in high energy efficiency
-- Inland navigation seems favorable with regard to external costs (costs
incurred as a consequence of greenhouse gas emissions, noise,
accidents)
-- The weaknesses can be compensated by setting up intermodal
transport chains in a way that one can benefit from the advantages of
the different transport modes while overcoming some of their
disadvantages

20. 1) Project Initiation
2) Formulation of objectives
3) Review of Relevant Studies
and Policies
4) Selection of Study Area
5) Reconnaissance Survey and
Justification of Study Area
Selection
6) Preparation of Questionnaire
7) Data Collection
8) Data Processing and Analysis
9) Submission of Report
7.1) Primary Source
- Questionnaire survey
- Focus Group Discussion
- Physical feature survey
- Key Informant Interview
7.2) Secondary Source
- Government policies and law
- Relevant research

21.  Three connected Lakes
 Total Area of Hatirjheel is
302 acres
 Gulshan-Baridhara Lake is
of 3.8 km
 Length of Banani Lake is
6.14 km
Figure: Google Map of the Study Area

22. Begunbari-
Hatirjheel Lake
 Three connected Lakes
 Total Area of Hatirjheel is
302 acres
 Gulshan-Baridhara Lake is
of 3.8 km
 Length of Banani Lake is
6.14 km
Figure: Google Map of the Study Area

23. Gulshan-Baridhara
Lake
 Three connected Lakes
 Total Area of Hatirjheel is
302 acres
 Gulshan-Baridhara Lake is
of 3.8 km
 Length of Banani Lake is
6.14 km
Figure: Google Map of the Study Area

24. Banani
Lake
 Three connected Lakes
 Total Area of Hatirjheel is
302 acres
 Gulshan-Baridhara Lake is
of 3.8 km
 Length of Banani Lake is
6.14 km
Figure: Google Map of the Study Area

25.  Begunbari Hatirjheel area has been
converted to a transportation hub
 It includes six bridges, four overpasses,
one expressway, U-loops, serviceable
road and 2.5m walkway to ease the
congestion congestion particularly in
Mouchak, Maghbazar and Tejgaon
intersections
Figure: Past and Present Photo of Begunbari
Hatirjheel Area

26.  About 139 acres of land was private ownership, 79 acres were state owned khas
land and the rest of the lands have been acquired from different government
organizations
 Some people managed to regain lands by giving bribe to the survey officials but
some others lost their lands due to acquisition. The compensation of RAJUK by
flats has not reached to all.
 Initially public transports were not allowed but recently public bus service in
Hatirjheel has been inaugurated.
 4 minibuses will pick up and drop passengers at ten locations through
Mohanagar, Madhubagh Rampura, Moghbazar, Begunbari-Kunipara, Gulshan
Aarong-Police Plaza and Merul Badda, starting from Rampura Bridge
 Lowest fare is Tk. 10 and highest is Tk. 30.

27.  The Banani Lake and Gulshan-
Baridhara Lake is also important
because they are serving a major
portion of ground water recharge of
these areas
 But the increasing pollution of these
lakes is contributing to pollute the
water of Hatirjheel-Begunbari Lake
Figure: Polluted Water of Gulshan Lake

28.  The Hatirjheel area has now become an oasis for the city dwellers where they
get fresh air and sitting and resting places.
 If the plan of amphitheater, water desk and ‘Eco-center’ is implemented it
would be ecologically sound.
 The lake can store approximately 3.06 billion liter of water and in the rainy
season the amount is 4.81 billion liter .
 Besides, there is a special cleaning team dedicated for waste management in
the Hatirjheel area which is conducted by a private organization

29.  A number of garbage bins have been provided by the authority but most of
them have been misused and damaged by public.
Figure: The Team Designated for Waste Disposal
Specially in Hatirjheel
Figure: Damaged Waste Bins Provided in
Hatirjheel Area

30.  Banani and Gulshan-Baridhara Lake have e soothing effect on surrounding
environment.
 But, it is polluting day by day in an increased amount due to lack of supervision of
regulatory and maintenance body.
 It has been declared as an Ecologically Critical Area (ECA) in 2001
 RAJUK constructed a 2.56-kilometre driveway by filling certain parts of the Gulshan-
Baridhara Lake, diverging from the original design
Figure: Road Construction Work by
RAJUK filling a part of Gulshan Lake
Figure: Pollution in Gunshan Lake as a
Result of Waste Dumping

31. Identification of Existing Problems
--Existing transportation system is mainly helpful for car users
45%
35%
20%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
50%
Unavailabiliy of public bus restriction of rickshaw Illegal sharing of passengers
by CNG
Existing Problem
Figure: Problems Identified by Users
Source: Researchers, 2015

32. Concern of Users :
-- Regular water traffic is never introduced
-- User’s interest differs according to their experience of water traffic
40%
30% 30%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
Highly
interested
Moderately
interested
Not interested
Interest of users for installing inland water transport system
Interest of users for
installing inland water
transport system
Figure : Interest of Users for Installing Inland Water Transport System
Source: Researcher, 1015

33. User’s Willingness to Pay :
-- Willingness to pay per trip is dependent on their income range.
-- This whole route covers 2.947 km in length from Sonargaon to Baridhara;
from literature review
--Proposed fare includes Tk. 15 for the whole route, Tk. 5 per km
Table : Willingness to Pay per Trip by Income Range
Source: Researcher, 1015
Income range Average willingness to pay per trip
<5000 8
5001-8000 10
8001-11000 12
11001-14000 15
>14000 20

34. Priority Ranking of Users :
--Ranking is analyzed according to their income range
--People mainly interested to minimize their time resources and expenses
Figure : Priority Ranking of Users
Source: Researcher, 1015
<5000 5001-8000 8001-11000 11001-14000 >14000
2
3 3 3
2
3
2 2 2
11 1 1 1
3
Priority Ranking of Users
Saving time Saving expense Encouraging water transport

35. Ownership of Area:
-- The construction process of Hatirjheel Lake is not completed still now, so
now the lake of the study area is under RAJUK
-- Surrounding land of study area is under City Corporation
--RAJUK will hand over the lake to City Corporation after completion of
Hatirjheel lake construction

36. Potential Spaces Identification for Installing Transfer Stations:
--Some spaces have been identified by Physical feature survey which have
enough potential for loading and unloading of passengers.
--This roadside is at west Rampura opposite of “Nijhum Residential
Area”, it can be used for transfer station for passengers; because
it is well designed space for waiting passengers.
-- Some other locations for
transfer station have been
proposed considering
people’s demand and
suggestions from key Informant
Interviews.
Figure : Preferred Location of Transfer Station
Source: Researcher, 1015

37. List of Key Informants
--Md. Anisur Rahman, Traffic Engineer, Dhaka Transport Coordination
Authority (DTCA)
--Syed Monowar Hossain, Ex-Secretary, Bangladesh Inland Water Transport
Authority (BIWTA)
--Engineer Syed Qudratullah, Additional Chief Engineer, Engineering
Department, Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC)
--Md. Mesbahul Karim, Superintending Engineer, Waste Management
Department, DNCC
--Dil Bahar Ahmed, Urban Planner, Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC)

38. According to DTCA,
--Height of bridge will not be problematic for water boat
--Preferable transfer point can be behind of Sheraton and middle of Hatirjheel
--But existing design of lake may be changed for transfer point construction
--Water bus can be run by battery but probable mitigation measures need to be
ensured
According to BIWTA,
--This study area is not under their supervision
-- Minimum 6 ft. depth is required for water based movement which is not
maintained in all parts of Hatirjheel
--Only craning is needed for transporting elements from one side to another of
the lake
--If pump engine is used, minimum eight minutes are required; thus time can be
saved

39. According to DNCC
--Inland Water Transport project is under their consideration
But all key informants emphasis on recreational purpose by this inland water
transport movement.
This study focuses on travel time savings for water based movement

40. The total project can be divided into two major components
 Material Components :
 Water Way
 Water Vehicle
 Station Points
 Human Components
 Capability of Administrative Authority
 Passenger
Figure: Passenger loading- unloading Figure: Water vehicle properly parked with safety equipment's

41.  Material Components :
 The HatirJheel- Gulshan-Baridhara Lake
 Availability of suitable location for station point
 Existence of water transport in shot extent in an informal way
 Human Components:
 Lake will be owned by the DNCC and they are thinking about
developing water way
 Passengers are willing to use water way
Figure: HatirJheel, Gulshan and Baridhara Lake Figure: Informal Passenger transfer

42.  Station Points:
Location are selected keeping in mind
 Within 5 minutes walking distance from the nearest bus stops
or hubs of activities
 Availability of sufficient space for establishing waiting place for
passengers
Figure: HatirJheel, Gulshan and Baridhara Lake

43.  Obstacles:
Locations that required special treatment
 Bridges with low heights
 Required depth for navigation
Figure: HatirJheel, Gulshan and Baridhara Lake
Figure: Bridge and rail line as obstacle

44.  The results of the study can be readily explained to government agencies and users with
simple examples from different countries.
 Provision of establishing co-operative association will help the government to maintain
the service properly.
 Existing inland water transport policies about water transport system inside Dhaka and
might be modified for smooth operation of inland water transport inside Dhaka.
 A range of public and private sector investments and initiatives are needed to realize the
potential for growth of water transport inside Dhaka and expanding economic output
from this sector. They should also come forward to help the government by providing
technical and financial support.
 The realization of this water ways potential must be aided by improvements in making the
outmost sustainable use of this resource. It will be helpful to increase accessibility of
people and reduce the pressure on road transport.
 More research would be required as quantitative and qualitative environmental impacts
for sustainable water transport system in Gulshan-Baridhara-Hatirjhil Lake.

45. Recommended Actions with Agencies Responsible
Recommended
Actions
Description Responsible
Agencies
Checking the Viability
of Operating Water
Transport
All points since are not potential enough for boating
through the year. Some bridges of Hatirjheel reaches
close to water during rainy season and these points
needs to be checked. Besides the Gulshan and Banani
Lake should also be checked and improved if necessary
for operation of water transports. In addition,
appropriate water transport should be designed that can
avail in such lakes.
RAJUK, BIWTA,
LGED and
Consulting
Agencies
Construction of
Landing Stations with
Necessary Facilities
The landing stations should include ticketing and
communication systems, proper sitting arrangements for
waiting passengers, waste disposal system, sanitary
facilities and public information displays.
BIWTA, LGED, CC,
NGOs,
Professionals

46. Recommended Actions with Agencies Responsible
Recommended
Actions
Description Responsible
Agencies
Connecting the Landing
Stations with Bus stops
and proposed plans
The landing stations can be connected with the bus
stops or bus stops can be installed nearby for reducing
waiting time of passengers.
DTCA, BIWTA and
Bus Owner’s
Association(cons
ultation with
passengers is
needed)
Encourage Public and
Private Participation
Public and private bus companies can be encouraged
with incentives to invest here. Besides the existing water
transport companies which operate through the country
can also be stimulated for participation.
Government
bodies, RAJUK
and Vehicles
Owners
Association

47. Recommended Actions with Agencies Responsible
Recommended
Actions
Description Responsible
Agencies
Encourage People for
Active Participation and
Acceptance
The whole project cannot be feasible with the active
participation of people. Proper public survey should be
conducted with identification of the user groups and
their valuable suggestions in type of the water
transport, fare determination landing stations should be
incorporated in implementation process. Besides, the
water transport should be un such a way that it become
safe for children, students, women and senior citizens.
Government
Bodies, City
Corporation, Civil
Society, Media
and Respected
Professionals
Governance and
Information
Dissemination
The project should be governed in such a way so that
accountability, transparency and coordination among
respected government and private authorities is
ensured. Dissemination of information among agencies
and also with public should be maintained.
All Related Public
and Private
Authorities, Civil
Society and
Citizens.

48. Recommended Actions with Agencies Responsible
Recommended
Actions
Description Responsible
Agencies
Environmental
Management
The project can generate waste and it should be
properly collected and disposed with the help of
existing cleaners in association with City
Corporation. The vehicle should be designed in
such a way so that they generate minimum
pollution to water. Besides, massive awareness
program is needed for proper guidance of people.
City
Corporation,
WASA,
Department of
Environment,
BIWTA and
Professionals.

49.  Feasibility study of the area, extraction of information through public opinion
surveys, consultation of experts and detail study on potential water transports
and their operations.
 Incorporation of Media and Civil Society for raising awareness of the necessity
of this project and encouraging active participation.
 Involve public and private sectors to invest here by providing water buses or
other suitable transports and arrange incentives for them by government if
possible.
 Formulation of a proper operation and monitoring system for long term
sustainability of the project and dissemination of responsibility to various
private and public organizations.
 Communication and coordination among all related agencies and also with the
users of this project.

50.  RAJUK, Special Work Organization, WASA and LGED are the stakeholders of this project
as they are the implementing authorities
 BUET as a consulting authority
 The people who will use the waterway are is the key stakeholder
 Though City Corporation (CC) has not yet been incorporated, active participation of CC is
needed for not only the waste disposal but also for improving the walkability of people,
proper landscape and raising awareness among people.
 Civil Societies can also create bridge among public authorities with users of this project.
 Department of environment, NGOs and environmental organizations like BELA, BAPA can
play and important role in maintaining the environmental quality of lake
 Media, NGOs and Professionals can motivate the people most in accepting the project
and successful operation of the whole system

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