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Govt to proceed with river transportation in Bekasi
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Workers check machinery at at a factory owned by steel company JFE Steel Galvanizing Indonesia in Cikarang, West Java. (Antara Photo/Risky Andrianto)
T
he government is going ahead with its plan to use the Cikarang Bekasi Laut (CBL) River, passing through industrial areas in Cikarang, West Java, to cut transportation costs and ease the burden on roads, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi has said.
The river flows into Jakarta Bay, which is close to Tanjung Priok Port in North Jakarta, the largest seaport in the country. “The land transportation is already too busy,” said Budi as reported by tribunnews.com on Friday.
The minister led an expedition recently to check the condition of the 20-meter wide and 2-meter deep river to make sure that it can accommodate barges transporting containers.
(Read also: Pesanggrahan River to be transformed into tourist spot)
The barges could transport containers containing manufactured goods from the industrial areas to Tanjung Priok and to transport materials from the port to the industrial areas, Budi said, adding that it would help reduce transportation costs significantly.
The waterway transportation would be expected to ease traffic congestion in the capital city and its neighboring cities as the roads are already overcrowded, said the minister.
He also blamed the trucks that frequently transport overloaded containers for the excessive wear and tear on many roads.
“It is a strategic move. We have to educate the truck drivers, who often overload their vehicles,” he said, adding that his ministry would also prepare ships to transport containers from Jakarta to Surabaya and from Jakarta to Semarang.
“It will make our economy more competitive than other countries because we can reduce logistics costs,” he added. (bbn)
