TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Minister of Public Works and Public Housing Basuki Hadimuljono is targeting to apply new toll fares for the Suramadu Bridge in East Java this month. The policy was set to accommodate President Joko Widodo's request to cut tariffs.
Basuki said that it is impossible to make the Suramadu Bridge highway free for the public as there are maintenance costs that the government need.
Currently, he added, the Toll Road Management Agency is reviewing the amount of tariff reduction. The new fare will be set by the Minister of Public Works.
"The smallest would be 50 percent [from the current tariff]," said Basuki.
President Jokowi had requested that Suramadu Bridge toll rate is cut by at least 50 percent. The decision was made during a closed meeting on the development of the Suramadu area at the Presidential Office in Jakarta, Wednesday.
The toll fare cut will be applied to four-wheeled vehicles. Right now large trucks must pay Rp90,000 to enter the bridge, medium trucks must pay Rp60,000 and sedans must pay Rp30,000
Sukarwo, the Governor of East Java, said the government's decision is very favorable to the province. He said that high toll fares have raised the prices of goods that come from Madura to Surabaya and the other way around.
ALI HIDAYAT | ANANDA TERESIA