"Before, we used to sit on a ferry for one day, two days, three days, and four days to pass the huge river, but now we only spend five minutes due to the construction of the bridge. We really benefit a lot," Bangladeshi bus driver Md Rezaul Islam told Xinhua recently.
The bridge Islam mentioned is the Padma Bridge, which was built by China Railway Major Bridge Engineering Group Co, Ltd. and opened to public in June 2022, ending the history of crossing the mighty Padma river between dozens of districts in southern Bangladesh and the capital of Dhaka only by ferries or boats.
According to Xie Xueqiang, vice manager of the Padma Bridge project, nearly 6 million vehicles used the bridge from June 2022 to June 2023, with an average of about 15,000 vehicles per day.
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Now, as a bus driver, Islam drives across the bridge almost every day after the bridge opens. "We've got many benefits, including saving money and time. We can make a return trip in just six hours."
"I'm very happy that my home is in the southern part of Bangladesh. It used to take us two days to go, but now I can reach home in just three hours, and I feel great," Abdul Mateen said.
"Many thanks to the Chinese company. This Padma Bridge is a product of many hardships, I wish that the steps to come in the future will be implemented and managed well," Mateen furthered noted.
In regard to the security and maintenance of the bridge, the team is combined with 155 workers, including four Chinese and 151 Bangladeshi nationals.
Barun Chakma is one of them as an operation manager. "What we are working is a comprehensive activity. We have to look around the huge bridge to maintain its safety and working smoothly."
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Chakma further said it is a challenging job, but they have done very well until now.
"This Padma Bridge is a historical bridge. It can promote the development of our transportation and the development of our economy," Chakma said, adding, "I feel proud as an employee to work for this bridge."
As an old Chinese saying goes, teaching one to fish is better than giving them fish. The constructing and maintaining of the bridge by Chinese engineers not only effectively improve the current situation of local road traffic and people's living standards, but also help train many Bangladeshi workers.
"I didn't have any idea about how to do this work at first," said Md Sohail Rana who joined in this project since June 2012, adding that he learned a lot from Chinese engineers hand by hand, including concrete block, bitumen, and cement tests.
Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said earlier that new economic zones and high-tech parks will be built centering on the bridge. As a result, domestic and foreign investment will be attracted and the industrialisation of the country will be accelerated.
At the same time, the first section of Padma Bridge Rail Link Project, crossing the Padma Bridge, as one of the most significant projects under construction by the China Railway Group Limited and funded by the Export-Import Bank of China, is planned to launch commercial operation in October.
It will serve as a vital channel that connects Dhaka and more than 20 districts in the south area of Bangladesh and is expected to greatly promote regional connectivity and the economic development of the South Asian country.
Due to the positive effects shown until now, it's believed that Padma Bridge can further benefit people's livelihood and speed up transformation of economic landscape in Bangladesh, said Xie.