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Govt kicks off construction of Jakarta LRT
Less than a week after President Joko âJokowiâ Widodo scrapped a high-speed rail project to connect Jakarta and Bandung, he broke ground on Wednesday on Jakartaâs 86-kilometer light rapid transit (LRT) project, promising more in the pipeline
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Less than a week after President Joko 'Jokowi' Widodo scrapped a high-speed rail project to connect Jakarta and Bandung, he broke ground on Wednesday on Jakarta's 86-kilometer light rapid transit (LRT) project, promising more in the pipeline.
'The most important thing is that all work must start immediately [...] I want to say that transportation infrastructure works aren't only in Java,' Jokowi said during the groundbreaking ceremony at Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII) in East Jakarta, adding that the government would start rail projects in Sulawesi and Papua in the near future. However, he did not elaborate further on the plans.
According to Jokowi, the LRT project, which has been discussed since 2012, will be integrated with Jakarta's other public transportation networks including Transjakarta busway and the MRT project that is currently under construction.
The elevated railway project is expected to be finished before 2018 when the city hosts the quadrennial Asian Games sporting event.
Kiswodarmawan, president director of state developer Adhi Karya, which was appointed to work on the Greater Jakarta section of the LRT project, said that the company expected to complete the first phase of construction by the end of the year.
In a bid to lower fares for passengers, the government has decided to absorb 70 percent of the total Rp 23.8 trillion (US$1.67 billion) of planned investment expenditure, while the remaining 30 percent will be absorbed by the operators, who will be appointed via a tender. Once operational, passengers will have to pay as much as Rp 15,000 per trip.
Adhi Karya will work on two routes: the first phase stretches 24 kilometers, connecting Cibubur to Cawang in East Jakarta and through to Dukuh Atas in Central Jakarta, while the second phase, which is set to start in the fourth quarter of 2016, will connect Bekasi Timur to Cawang and Dukuh Atas, a total distance of 18 kilometers.
Separately, Jakarta Governor Basuki 'Ahok' Tjahaja Purnama said that his administration, which is in charge of the inner-city section, would start construction in January next year.
Ahok said his office was still fine-tuning the details of the development and a tender for the project was set to begin this month.
'Jakarta will conduct a tender, which we plan to start this September in conjunction [with the tender] to build an athletes' village [for the Asian Games]. This means we can do the groundbreaking in January.'
The inner-city routes consist of a 21.6-kilometer line from Kebayoran Lama in South Jakarta to Kelapa Gading in North Jakarta and a 30-kilometer line connecting Cempaka Putih in Central Jakarta to Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.
The LRT is set to reach a maximum speed of 80 kilometers per hour, with each LRT train capable of carrying 300 passengers.
Last week, Jokowi ended heated discussions over whether Japan or China should build the country's first high-speed rail project by scrapping the idea altogether.
