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Govt begins construction of MRT Jakarta east-west line
It is the first phase of the construction of a 87 km line connecting Balaraja in Banten and Cikarang in West Java. The next phase is scheduled to begin in 2033.
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A worker walks on May 7, 2024, at the end of a tunnel construction site for the Jakarta MRT in front of a tunnel boring machine. Phase 2 of the project will extend the current line to the north with a loan from the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). (AFP/Yasuyoshi Chiba)
C
ity-owned MRT Jakarta has begun building a 24.5-kilometer rapid transit line to connect Tomang, West Jakarta, to Medan Satria, a regency in Bekasi city, West Java, with the company projecting completion in 2031.
It is the first phase of the construction of a 87 km line connecting Balaraja in Banten and Cikarang in West Java. The next phase is scheduled to begin in 2033.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, who spoke at the ceremony marking the start of construction, said the line would improve Jakarta’s public transportation system and noted that the MRT had served a total of 120 million passengers since it began operating in 2021.
“We want to expand, widen the scope of development, so today, we will build the east-west line,” the President said in his remarks on Wednesday.
Read also: MRT Jakarta mulls extending rail line to South Tangerang
The project has received a loan of 140.7 billion Japanese yen (US$983.5 million) from the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA).
The 40-year loan has a below-market interest rate of 0.3 percent, with a 10-year repayment grace period.
