TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo inaugurated today the 30.9-kilometer long Pekanbaru - Bangkinang toll road, which is part of the Padang - Pekanbaru toll road that will connect Riau and West Sumatra Provinces. The new toll road spent a budget of Rp4.8 trillion.

He explained that this toll road will be connected to the Pekanbaru ring, so that Dumai, Pekanbaru, and Bangkinang will be connected. The Pekanbaru - Dumai toll road has been operating since 2020.

“It will be continued until Padang. When will it be finished? I can't talk of it yet because it will take a long time,” said the President during the inauguration in Kampar Regency, Riau, Wednesday, January 4, 2022.

The Pekanbaru - Bangkinang toll road is the second operating toll road in Riau after the Pekanbaru - Dumai toll road which is claimed to already have very good traffic.

The head of state hoped that the mobility of people, goods, and services will improve with this toll road which will then boost the competitiveness of existing products in the provinces.

“We hope that we can also grow new economic centers and in the end, it will open jobs and provide welfare to the community,” he said.

The construction project of the other section, the Padang - Sicincin toll road, has not been completed yet even though it had been inaugurated by Jokowi in February 2018. In fact, it was the first section of the Padang - Pekanbaru toll road which was targeted to operate this year.

FAJAR PEBRIANTO

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