T

he West Java administration plans to build a Light Rapid Transit (LRT) system that will connect with the planned Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway.

West Java provincial administration secretary Iwa Karniwa said the LRT system would serve routes in Greater Bandung, which includes Bandung city, Bandung regency, Cimahi city, West Bandung regency and Sumedang regency.

'€œThat way, there will be intermodal integration,'€ Iwa Karniwa said in Bandung on Wednesday.

He added that deliberations on the LRT system had reached the draft stage of the presidential decree and would only need a technical meeting with the directorate general of railway to synchronize the high-speed train and the LRT projects.

He said the LRT project would be funded by several cooperating firms, just like the Jakarta-Bandung fast train project, which was funded by Chinese investors and Indonesian state-owned enterprises.

Iwa added that the West Java provincial administration had recommended eight routes for the Greater Bandung LRT project, namely Leuwipanjang-Jatinangor, Leuwipanjang-Padalarang, Leuwipanjang-Soreang, Gedebage-Majalaya, Dago-Leuwipanjang, Cibeureum-Gedebage, Martadinata-Majalaya and Dago-Pasirluyu.

'€œThe main station will be in Bandung. We suggest that there would be more than 14 stations, but we still have to wait for the technical meeting with the Transportation Ministry,'€ Iwa said.

In a related development, Transportation Minister Ignasius Jonan has issued the license for the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train proposed by the PT Kereta Api Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC) consortium for a 142-kilometer route.

The government agreed to four stations on the route, namely Halim, Karawang, Walini and Tegalluar, and an operational facility outside Tegalluar.

Transportation Ministry spokesperson JA Barata said PT KCIC had applied for a license from the Transportation Minister to declare the company a railway facility management entity.

The next step would be for investors to deposit capital of at least Rp 1 trillion and obtain a development license, which required the detailed engineering design (DED) and the environment impact analysis from the Ministry of Environment and Forestry.

Construction on the high-speed train, which will run at more than 250 kilometers per hour, is set to begin this month and is slated to finish by the end of 2018.

Bandung Mayor Ridwan Kamil has recommended the central government allow his side to directly appoint PT KCIC to the development of the LRT in Bandung city, particularly for Line 2, to expedite the integration.

Line 2, which covers a route of 20 km, will connect Cimindi in the western part of the city with Gedebage in the eastern part.

Ridwan also said that PT KCIC had prepared US$1 billion for the project. '€œThe funds are the investors'€™ responsibility. The exact value of the investment is not yet known, because the feasibility study is still going on,'€ Ridwan said.

The development of the LTR'€™s Line 2, according to Ridwan, would follow the groundbreaking of the fast train project in mid-January in Walini, Purwakarta regency, West Java.

He said the feasibility study on Line 2 would only be conducted after Jan. 21. '€œIt will take three months to finish. The development is expected to start this year.'€

The mayor expressed his hope that the LRT'€™s Line 2 could be built within a year.

He said if the development of the 140 km fast-train project was projected to finish by 2018, the 20 km Line 2 development could be completed in a year.
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