TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo inaugurated Otto Iskandar Dinata or Otista Bridge in Baranangsiang, Bogor City today, Tuesday, Dec. 19, 2023. The bridge is aimed at solving traffic congestion issues in Bogor.

The Otista Bridge was initially a source of congestion in a one-way traffic system at the heart of the city. This bridge has been widened to 22 meters with 17 meters for the road and 5 meters for pedestrians. This revitalization project spent over Rp101 billion of aid from the provincial government of West Java.

Bogor Mayor Bima Arya Sugiarto said this bridge is expected to smoothen out the traffic surrounding the bridge and hopefully better the livelihood of its residents.

"The residents were very patient. Not only due to the traffic but also the decline in income," Bima said.

Jokowi did not give any remarks during the event, but he confirmed Bima's previous statement mentioning that the bridge was a problem for Bogor City before. "But it's more than adequate now," he said after the inauguration of Otista Bridge.

The head of the Public Works and Housing Office Rena Da Frina said on Sunday that the bridge construction has been through a rigorous calculation, including a century-long resilience against vibration and load.

"The bridge has been designed to be durable for up to 80 to 100 years," Rena said, as quoted by Antara.

Rena also explained that the city government of Bogor agreed to keep the colonial arch of the bridge as a heritage.

DANIEL A. FAJRI

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