Govt to Prioritize Highway Construction in Jakarta
30 October 2014 21:00 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Subagyo, the director of highway engineering at Public Works and Public Housing Ministry’s Bina Marga Directorate General, said the government would prioritize the construction of several toll road to ease the capital's severe traffic congestion.
Subagyo said on Thursday, October 30, 2014, that the prioritized toll roads comprised those connecting Cilincing and Cibitung (33.61 kilometers), Cinere and Serpong (10.14 kilometers), Serpong-Kunciran (11.15 kilometers), and Kunciran and Cengkareng (14.19 kilometers).
According to Subagyo, traffic jam and land prices have made toll road construction in the area priority projects. Subagyo revealed that Rp288 billion (US$24 million), allocated by the government, was insufficient to purchase the 193.47 hectares of land required for the turnpike construction.
“It needs more than Rp4 trillion (US$333.3 million) [to acquire the land],” Subagyo said.
In addition to the toll road projects in Jakarta, the government has also prioritized the 650-kilometer trans-java toll road project, which is deemed crucial in dealing with the annual homecoming exodus during the Lebaran holidays.
YOLANDA RYAN ARMINDYA
