Bangladesh launched its first metro rail service, mostly funded by Japan, in the densely populated capital on Wednesday amid enthusiasm that the South Asian country’s development bonanza would continue with both domestic and overseas funds. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina inaugurated the service accompanied by newly appointed Japanese Ambassador Kiminori Iwama and Ichiguchi Tomohide, the chief representative of Japan International Cooperation Agency, or JICA. In June, Hasina inaugurated a 6.51-kilometer (4.04-mile) bridge spanning the Padma River, which was built by China at a cost of about $3.6 billion that was paid with domestic funds. It was one of more than 100 bridges Hasina has opened in recent months. A limited version of the metro service was launched on Wednesday, and is expected to grow to over 100 stations and six lines crisscrossing the city by 2030, reports AP. A section of the first line connects a prime neighborhood on Dhaka’s periphery with the city center. It was built with a $2.8 billion price tag and largely funded by JICA. The line is expected to carry 60,000 people each hour when it is fully operational, according to project documents. — Agencies