TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - State railway operator Kereta Api Indonesia, or PT KAI, and the government are discussing the plan to build Light Rail Transit (LRT) in the new capital city, North Penajam Paser, East Kalimantan.

LRT Executive Vice President of Greater Jakarta, Mochamad Purnomosidi, said that the company had an early discussion with the Ministry of Transportation regarding the railway. "Discussion with the Transportation Ministry about the route and track. It was just an early discussion," said Purnomo at Grand Hyatt, Jakarta on Wednesday, January 19.

Purnomosidi admitted that there had been a talk with the government to build train-based transportation in the new capital, and among the prioritized ones is LRT, like the ones built in Palembang and Greater Jakarta.

Despite that, he said that the company has not received direct assignments. Therefore, KAI is still focusing on completing the first phase of LRT construction in Greater Jakarta. "We targeted the extension to complete in 2023."

In the plenary meeting yesterday, the House of Representatives (DPR) has ratified the bill on the new capital city as the legal umbrella for the capital relocation.

Following the existence of the legal umbrella, the government will start constructing the new capital city with the targeted budget of Rp466.98 trillion, as stated on ikn.go.id.

Read: Greater Jakarta LRT Adopts Automated System; KAI Prepares Trained Attendants

FRANCISCA CHRISTY ROSANA | Graven (Intern)