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High speed train to integrate with LRT, break ground this month
Officials said on Monday that a Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway would be integrated with existing railway projects, as President Joko âJokowiâ Widodo expected the construction of the US$5
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fficials said on Monday that a Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway would be integrated with existing railway projects, as President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo expected the construction of the US$5.5 billion project to kick off on Jan. 21.
The remarks were made during a limited Cabinet meeting at the State Palace on Monday, which was also attended by Transportation Minister Ignasius Jonan, Jakarta Deputy Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat, West Java Governor Ahmad Heryawan, Bandung Mayor Ridwan Kamil and Bintang Prabowo, a representative from the consortium for the construction project.
In the meeting, it was also decided to seek ways to integrate the nation's first ever high-speed train with existing mass transportation projects, including the ongoing construction of a light rapid transit (LRT) project in Jakarta, such as building an LRT line in Bandung in order to connect the city with the high-speed train.
Jokowi said that this year, he wanted to see an acceleration in infrastructure development, particularly that related to railways.
'The President [also] emphasized that matters related to the licenses [required for the project] must be able to be settled immediately as [he] hopes that ground-breaking can be done on Jan. 21,' Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung told a press conference after the meeting on Monday.
The consortium of PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC) is a joint venture between Indonesian state firms PT Wijaya Karya, PT Kereta Api Indonesia, PT Jasa Marga and PT Perkebunan Nasional VIII with the China Railway International Co. Ltd. KCIC.
The high-speed train, which will run at over 250 kilometers per hour on a 140-kilometer long track, will begin construction in 2016 and is slated to be finished by the end of 2018. It will pass four stations in its first phase, including Halim in Jakarta and Karawang, as well as Gede Bage or Tegalluar in West Java.
The West Java governor said connecting the high-speed train with an LRT line was needed to allow passengers to easily continue their journeys to the center of Bandung or other areas in Greater Bandung, like Soreang, Padalarang, Cimahi and Sumedang.
'The LRT in Jakarta will connect areas in Greater Jakarta; the LRT in Bandung and its wider area will be integrated with the high-speed train,' he added.
It will be another challenge for Jakarta to connect the high-speed train with its ongoing mass transportation projects, including the LRT and an airport commuter train.
'It is Jakarta's task to integrate the high-speed train with Manggarai station [in Central Jakarta] where in the future it will have a line connecting Manggarai to Soekarno-Hatta airport,' he added.
The high-speed train is expected to encourage the economic development of surrounding areas, for example Walini, which is located between Jakarta and Bandung.
Meanwhile, Bintang, who is also PT Wijaya Karya's president director, revealed that the consortium was ready to invest in the Bandung LRT project, saying the group's involvement would ensure that the project and the high-speed train used the same technology and shared similar time frames for completion.
According to Pramono, almost all licensing processes had been completed, and the President wanted all others to be finished by Jan. 14 or 15.
