The Jakarta Post
The City Council has slashed the proposed budget for Jakarta's expansive and ambitious sidewalk renovation project across the capital, arguing that other programs need attention. After a long debate during deliberation of the capital’s 2020 budget priorities (KUA-PPAS), held prior to deliberating the 2020 city budget, the City Council’s commission D overseeing development affairs, and the Jakarta Bina Marga Road Agency decided to cut Rp 204 billion (US$14.53 million) from the sidewalk renovation budget for next year. The administration had previously proposed a budget of Rp 1.2 trillion to build 103 kilometers of new sidewalks. The proposed 2020 project is 40 percent more expensive than the city’s 2019 sidewalk construction project of 67 km. The massive budget for the project even uses up 30 percent of Bina Marga’s 2020 projected budget of Rp 3.9 tril...