Bangladesh Railway Bureau and China Railway Group (CREC) signed a contract on Aug. 8 to undertake a project with a total value of $3.14 billion. The project is to build a rail link across the Padma Bridge in Dhaka, the capital of Bengal.　　

 
When complete, the bridge will become a transport corridor between the western and eastern parts of the country. The railway line will start from Dhaka and end at Jessore, forming the most important rail link in southwestern Bangladesh. The main line of the new railway will be 168.6 kilometers long and reach a maximum speed of 120 kilometers per hour.

The new project will help to improve traffic conditions in the western and southwestern parts of Bangladesh, as well as to promote social and economic development in these regions. Furthermore, it will benefit the country's foreign trade with China, India and Myanmar.

China Major Bridge Engineering, a company associated with CREC, won the contract for the main part of the Padma Bridge itself in 2014. That contract was valued at $1.55 billion. Development of the Padma Bridge is by far the largest overseas bridge project carried out by a Chinese company. Bangladeshi citizens are already calling the project the "Bridge of Dreams."

The construction of the railway line on the Padma Bridge and the bridge itself will eliminate residents' dependence on ferry transport to travel between the capital, Dhaka, and the 21 southern districts. The line will also be an important part of the Trans-Asian Railway.