Lecture on Infrastructure – Road Related

at IESL

Eng./Plnr. Nihal Somaweera

Former Secretary
Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation
Sri Lanka
 Engineer in Society
After graduation your carrier will be in one of the following:

- Academic Field - University

- Technical Colleges

- Industry - Government
- Semi Government Organization
- Private Sector - Employer
- Employee
Government Structure and Responsibilities
Central Government - Ministries
- Departments
- Boards/Corporations
(Semi Government)
Provincial Councils - 9 Provincial Councils
Local Government - Municipal Councils
- Urban Councils
- Pradeshiya Sabas

Constitution (9th Schedule of 13th Amendment) specified

duties for Central Government and Provincial Councils.

Subject of Transport falling in both lists. (Provincial Council

list and Reserved list)
Transport Sector Functions for Central Government and Agencies
Involved

According to Reserved list in the 13th Amendment to the

constitution following subjects and functions with Central
Government
Ports and Harbours
Aviation and Airports
National Transport (This would include : )
(a) Railways
(b) Highways declared by Law made by Parliament
(c) Carriage of Passengers and Goods by railway, land, sea or
air or by National Water ways by mechanically propelled
vessels
 Transport Sector Agencies under Central Government

Ministry of Transport - Railway Department

- Sri Lanka Transport Board
- Department of Motor Traffic
- National Transport Commission
- National Transport Medical Institute
- Civil Aviation Authority
- Airport & Aviation Company Ltd.
Ministry of Road Development & Higher Education - RDA
Ministry of Port & Shipping - SLPA
Ministry of Megapolis & Western Development
- UDA
- Megapolis Project
- SLLRDC
 National Urban Transport Policies and Plans

• The Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation with the technical

assistance of Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
completed a Master Plan for Urban Transport System Development
for Colombo Metropolitan Region and the Suburbs in 2014.

• Under the same Technical Assistance a feasibility study for the

implementation of a monorail system was completed.

• A study was undertaken for the Implementation of Bus Rapid Transit

system in a congested transport corridor by University of Moratuwa.
• Megapolis Transport Plan

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 Megapolis Transport Plan
• Recently established Ministry of Megapolis and Western Development used the
above two comprehensive study data and developed Western Region Transport
plan with collaboration of all the transport sector agencies.

• Following high priority projects identified by Western Region Transport Plan

have been already approved by the Government.

 Introduction of flexible & staggering Working Hours

 Parking Management
 Improvements of Intersections with signal timing updates
 Improvement of School & office Transport services
 Restructuring Public Bus Service
 Modernizing & Improving the quality and services of the buses
 Feasibility on Bus Rapid Transit
 Rapid Transit for the CBD
 Multimodal Transport Hub
 Railway Electrification and Modernization
 Road Improvements/ Road Capacity Improvement
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Background and Status of National Transport System
• Main passenger transport modes: Bus transport & Rail transport
Three wheelers, Private taxies, cars, vans etc

• Travel demand by all modes of motorized transport around 80 billions

passenger km annually

• Passenger transport : undertaken by both Public and Private buses.

• Bus transport share : 61% of the country’s total passenger transport.

Total number of buses (approximately) : 30,000

Average number of private buses operated daily : 24,000
Average number of government owned buses : 6,000

• Percentage of road transport method for freight : 98%

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(vans, Lorries, Larger trucks, containers etc )
 Existing Road Network System

• Roads are the backbone of the

transport sector in the country.
• About 90 percent of passengers and
98 percent of freight are carried by
the road.
• The road network of the country
consists of 116,000 km. Roads are
divided into National, Provincial, Rural
and other roads in terms of the
responsibility.
• Sri Lanka has experienced in
expressways lines
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Road Network 116,000 km
Type of roads km
National Highways 12,334
Provincial Roads 15,975
Rural Roads 83,765
Other roads 4,000
Road density 1.76 km/sq. km

National Highways
Type of roads km
Expressways 161
A Class Highways 4,215
B Class Highways 7,958
Bridges 4200

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 Expressway Network

 Southern Expressway (126.1km)

 Colombo – Katunayaka Expressway (25.8km)
 Outer Circular Expressway (29.2km)

Outer Circular Expressway

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 Existing Rail Network System
• The total route length of Sri Lanka
Railway is 1,450km, consisting 172
major stations and 161 sub
stations that covers most of the
country except the southeast.
• Except for 126km double –track
lines around Colombo, rest of the
network is single track line.
• The present railway system
provides the suburban railway
service from suburbs to the city
Centre.
• Policy Perspectives and Strategic
Investment programme 2016 – 2021
was prepared for Railway sector in
2015 covering all parts of the
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country.
 Ongoing and Planned
Major Urban Transportation Projects

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Colombo Suburban Railway
Project

• Ministry of Transport and Civil

Aviation is currently conducting
feasibility study for identifying the
issues and projects to modernize
urban railway system(230KM)
under the Technical Assistant from
Asian Development Bank.

• Colombo Suburban Railway

Project Management unit already
have appointed.
• Feasibility Study Completed
• Detail Design Consultancy 14
RTS for Colombo proposed by
Megapolis Planning Project

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Construction of Multimodal Transport Hub
• A feasibility study to construct a Multimodal Transport Hub in
Colombo Fort so as to integrate all transport modes for the
convenience of both rail and bus passengers .

Existing Railway Station at Fort and Bus Conceptual Image of the Multimodal Transport
Stands/stops Hub in Colombo
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Cont.. Ongoing and Planned Major Urban Transportation Projects
Elevated Port Access Road
• In order to provide easy access to
cargo and container traffic
Colombo and Suburbs to reach
Colombo Fort and Harbour and to
ease the prevailing traffic
congestion within the Colombo
city area, it is proposed 5.8 km
length to provide a high mobility
facility to connect Colombo Fort • Proposed project is expected to be
with the expressway network. completed within three years.

• For this purpose, an elevated • Estimated cost of the project

highway, from New Kelani Bridge would be about US$ 250 Mn with
at Peliyagoda to Colombo Fort has funding Asian Development bank.
been proposed.
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Cont.. Ongoing and Planned Major Urban Transportation Projects
New Kelani Bridge - 2

• Construction of Main Line

consisting of extradosed Bridge
parallel to the existing bridge
connecting CKE and Base Line
Road.
• The bridge accommodates 6-lane
traffic with 380m length.
• Construction of Elevated Road
towards the Port Access Road.
• Construction of Interchange and
Junction
• Improvement of A-grade Road. 18
Cont.. Ongoing and Planned Major Urban Transportation Projects
Elevated expressway from OCH through Koswatta, Rajagiriya

• It has been proposed to construct

an elevated highway network in
Colombo district in order to
improve connectivity between
Colombo City and Administrative
capital Battaramulla to prevailing
traffic congestion.

• This elevated expressway will be

implemented in two phases.

• Phase 1- New Kelaniya Bridge to

Rajagiriya (6.9 km, US$ 400Mn)
and Phase 2 – Rajagiriya to
Athurugiriya (10.4 km, US$
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500Mn).
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