Sri Lankan government inaugurates extended railway line in Southern Province from Matara-Beliatte
Sri Lanka’s Minister of Transports and Civil Aviation Arjuna Ranatunga has declared open the newly extended railway line from Matara-Beliatte marking another milestone in Sri Lanka Railway history.
At the national ceremony held under the theme ‘Dakunu Lakata Aluth Magak’ (New Road to Southern Sri Lanka), the first train commenced the journey on the new track.
In the future, on the Matara-Beliatta line, seven trains are scheduled to start from Beliatta Station. One of them will travel up to Galle and four trains will travel up to Maradana. The two remaining trains will head to Jaffna and Vavuniya.
Construction of the Matara to Beliatta section was carried out by a Chinese company at a cost of US$ 278 million with the funding from China Exim Bank.
The main stations have been constructed at Kekunadura, Bambarenda, Wevurukannala and Beliatta. Two sub stations have been setup at Piladuwa and Veherahena.
According to reports, both the longest railway bridge in the country as well as the second longest bridge are on the Matara-Beliatta track. The longest, Watagama Bridge, is 1,500m long, and the second longest bridge across the Nil Wala River is 1,400m in length.
Also, the tunnel next to the Kekunadura Railway station, measuring 2,017ft in length, is the longest tunnel in the country while the platform of the Beliatta train station is the longest train platform in Sri Lanka at a length of 300 meters.
OSL take:
Sri Lanka’s development programme has created many business/investment opportunities for foreign businesses/investors keen on engaging with Sri Lanka.
| Article Code : | VBS/AT/09042019/Z_3 |