Sylhet Bureau

The Sylhet Central Bus Terminal, one of the most advanced architectural designs in the country, is awaiting its inauguration. The bus terminal, built on 8 acres of land near the Kadamtoli Central Bus Terminal of South Surma in Sylhet city, is being constructed at a cost of Tk 65 crore with financing by the World Bank.

Once opened, the terminal will be the most attractive and convenient bus terminal in the country, said officials. Construction of the terminal is now at the last stage and awaiting inauguration in the schedules of three ministers - Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister Md Tajul Islam, Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen and Planning Minister MA Mannan - for the official inauguration.

Mayor Ariful Haque Chowdhury of Sylhet City Corporation said the appearance of the terminal area will change after the terminal is opened, and passengers will receive modern and high-quality services there. Acting Chief Engineer of Sylhet City Corporation Noor Azizur Rahman said the new bus terminal complex has been constructed under the Municipal Government Service Project funded by the World Bank. Dali Construction is implementing the 3-storey complex and 6-storey foundation.

The terminal has a brick-colored steel tin roof, elaborate red brick walls, a green zone covered with plants, airport-style separate bus departure and arrival, and a huge waiting lounge with about 1500 seats for passengers. Construction work of the entire terminal has been divided into three parts, said people involved in construction.

The length of the departure area is 350 feet. It has 48 bus bays and facilities to seat 970 passengers. There will be a VIP room with 30 seats, 30 ticket counters, and a prayer room with capacity for 50 people. There will be toilet zones for both men, women and people with disabilities. Elevators have been installed to help people go up to the restaurant and food court areas. There will be bed facilities for passengers who fall ill, and the terminal also includes breast-feeding zones for infants.

The arrival area is about 300 feet in length and has bus bays, a 510-seat waiting space for passengers and a 30-seat VIP room, modern toilet facilities, sick beds, breast-feeding zones, elevators, and restaurants. Although the departure and arrival areas are separated, the entire structure becomes a circular building through corridors. The Terminal Operations and Management Office is housed in a circular 5-story tower along the road at the southwest corner. There will be a security control corner and CCTV monitoring room alongside a room for the police and tourism office.

A multipurpose welfare centre has been constructed in the rear of the terminal, where there will be a 24-bed rest room for the owners and drivers association. This corner will offer shower facilities, offices, locker facilities, a canteen, and a large multipurpose auditorium for meetings and events.
There will be first aid, a doctor, and ambulance services alongside a resting zone for the passengers. Besides, there will be a separate bus parking zone for a better arrangement of entry and exit according to each route.

A huge waiting space has been kept alongside the parking zone. Keeping in mind the environment, the rear of the building has been made a green zone.
Engineer Helal Uddin, senior site engineer of Dali Construction, said each of the items used in construction has been tested at Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology for safety.

Although the project was initiated in 2018, the work was suspended for a long period due to the Covid-19 pandemic, he added.

The new terminal was designed by assistant professors of architecture at Shahjalal University of Science and Technology Subrata Das and Robin Dey, along with architect Mohammad Jasim Uddin. Subrata Das said the inspiration behind the design was Sylhet’s Assamese-style heritage houses, and Ali Amjad's Clock in Sylhet city. They were specifically looking for red roof sheets for the structure to match their design.