T

otal gridlock will occur next year as various construction projects will be carried out, an expert says.

'€œTraffic will increase by 10 percent next year, with an average speed in the capital expected to be between 8 and 10 kilometers per hour,'€ Indonesia Transportation Society chairman Danang Parikesit said on Monday.

'€œTraffic gridlock will be at its worst in the next two years as the city will see the construction of various government projects, including mass rapid transit, monorail, airport train and elevated train loop lines,'€ he said.

Deputy Transportation Minister Bambang Susantono pointed out that expanding rail-based public transportation in Greater Jakarta would be among the government'€™s priority projects next year.

'€œWe call it '€˜railvolution'€™. The ministry allocated the biggest budget to railway projects. We hope rail-based public transportation can reduce the burden of other means of public transportation,'€ he said, citing that the government would allocate Rp 700 billion (US$57.4 million) to fund the first phase of the elevated train loop line project.

Bambang said the government would not delay any construction projects.

'€œWe should start right away to avoid even more complicated problems. The construction of transportation projects will be synchronized and integrated. Traffic engineering will be our priority,'€ he said.

Danang added the city should reduce the impact of construction by gradually removing on-street parking and relocating illegal street vendors at markets.

Meanwhile, a newly-established Greater Jakarta Transportation Authority (OTJ) will start work next year.

Coordinating Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa said the authority would consist of representatives of transportation authorities in Greater Jakarta.

'€œThe body will not nullify each agency'€™s authority but will function as a coordinator. Its priority will be expanding the Greater Jakarta transportation network,'€ he said.

Hatta explained the plan during his visit to Tanjung Priok Port in North Jakarta with Governor Joko '€œJokowi'€ Widodo, to inspect the latest delivery of Transjakarta buses.

A new fleet of Transjakarta buses has started to arrive in the capital, albeit later that expected.

As many as 12 new Transjakarta articulated buses, which were procured from Chinese company Zhong Thong, arrived at the capital'€™s port on Monday.

According to Jakarta Transportation Agency head Udar Pristono, the city expected to receive a total of 656 buses this year, comprising 310 Transjakarta buses and 346 medium-sized buses.

'€œOf the 310 Transjakarta buses, 102 are already assembled while the remainder must be assembled. They will all be ready by Dec.29,'€ Udar said.

Udar explained that the new buses were expected to be fully operational in January.

Hatta said the central government was ready to share the city administration'€™s burden.

'€œWe'€™re ensuring the new buses will get sufficient CNG (compressed natural gas) supplies by building between 27 to 30 new CNG stations until 2015 through state-owned energy companies,'€ he said.