6 months on, monorail route still up in the air

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Uncertainty still shrouds the US$650 million monorail project, though its been half a year since the first pylon for it was sunk into the median strip of Jl. Asia-Afrika in Central Jakarta. One thing that has not been settled, for example, is whether the monorail will run by the Bung Karno Sports Complex.

"As of today, we have not received any statement from the State Secretary," Assistant to the City Secretary for Development Affairs Hari Sandjojo said after a meeting with executives of the consortium in charge of the project, PT Jakarta Monorail, and city administration officials.

The State Secretary, who manages the Bung Karno Sports Complex, has objected to the monorail passing by it.

Although Hari said the project would go ahead with or without the nod of the State Secretary, he did not suggest an alternative route.

Contrary to the statement made by PT Jakarta Monorail last month -- after months of no construction work -- that it was ready to start work at several locations on the planned route, the Jakarta administration revealed on Monday that construction work would resume in March.

"Hopefully, Jakarta residents will see the project develop, such as the construction of stations and a depot, in March," Hari said.

He said both the consortium and the administration had agreed in the meeting to fulfill all administrative requirements for the project as soon as possible.

"Currently, we are studying the proposed lay out, construction and management aspects of the project. We plan to complete the study within a month so that we can start working in March," he asserted.

Meanwhile, executive director of PT Jakarta Monorail Sukmawaty Syukur admitted that the consortium faced several obstacles in the implementation of the project.

"Obstructions in the field are commonplace. We are committed to going ahead with the project while we sort out the technical documents required," Sukmawaty said.

The consortium said earlier that some foreign financial institutions, like the Asian Development Bank, the Islamic Development Bank and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) had requested that the consortium complete the necessary documents before the loans were processed.

Since the groundbreaking ceremony presided over by former president Megawati Soekarnoputri on June 14, the consortium has changed the Blue Line Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta-Mal Taman Anggrek, West Jakarta route from the initial Kampung Melayu-Roxy shopping center route.

However, both the consortium and the administration have given their assurances that the project will be finished on time.

The Green Line's completion is slated for the end of 2006, while the Blue Line should be ready in early 2007.