IMPORTANCE OF INTERMODAL TRANSPORTATIONS AND COMMUNICATION INFRASTRUCTURE IN DEVELOPING PRESENT HINTERLAND CONNECTIVITY WITH PORTS OF BANGLADESH

Abstract

With consistence 5% plus GDP growth for last two decades, Bangladesh has
emerged as one of the most viable and growth oriented economy of Asia. At
same time, globalization and trade liberalization paralleled by the revolution in
information and communications technologies are continually advancing and
significantly altering existing markets and triggering a race for the future. To
pick up the pace in the development marathon, Bangladesh needs to improve
the type and quality of transport and logistics services and infrastructure. The
massive growth in containerization which introduced the modern concept of
Multimodal Transport has shifted the cargo delivery system from “port-to-port”
to “door-to-door”. The fundamental objective of intermodalism is not only to
optimize a single mode of transportation but also to integrate the modes into an
optimal, sustainable and ethical system. Such a system should promote efficiency,
safety, mobility, economic growth and protection of the natural environment.
The biggest impediments to intermodalism are bottlenecks on the corridors from
ports to hinterland. Due to lack of infrastructure capacity, such as rail slots,
congestion in roads and draught restriction in waterways, seamless handling of
containers is still a great challenge for Bangladesh.
This study hopes to complement this ambition by pointing to the way forward
towards developing multimodal transport in the country to contribute towards
the greater objective of creating a world-class logistics industry in Bangladesh.
It is formulated to provide a foundation upon which nationwide seamless and
integrated system can be established. Their collective thrust lead to the suggestion
that the various transport modes are integrated with the supply chain towards
creating a more efficient supply chain and inter-transport links in the country. The
recommendations put forth in this paper can help to address the presently disjointed
linkages amongst the transport modes in the country, leading to a national policy on
multimodal transport development to remove obstacles and inefficiencies towards
ensuring an efficient and rapid transportation of container in the country.