Bogor Botanical Gardens underpass already under construction

Bogor Botanical Gardens underpass already under construction

Leony Aurora
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta

The construction of a pedestrian underpass connecting Bogor
Institute of Agriculture (IPB) with the Bogor Botanical Gardens,
is already underway. A new parking lot at the insitute and a new
gate at the botanical gardens are being built as part of the
project.

Due to a huge hole on Jl. Pajajaran, Bogor marking the site of
the underpass, traffic is being diverted to another road.

ITB students have protested that the Rp 7.6 billion
(US$894,117) project, called the integrated rearrangement of
Baranangsiang area, will change the face of their campus. But
grass has already been cleared for the parking lot and concrete
laid.

The parking lot, with a capacity of 50 buses, will be located
near the basketball court. Visitors will have to walk 200 meters
through the campus grounds to access the underpass. The street in
front of the parking lot will also be widened to enable buses
heading to Jakarta to enter the toll road.

IPB management argued that the parking lot would be a source
of income for the insitute, which needs Rp 18 million per student
annually to cover costs but charges only Rp 10 million per
student yearly.

Aside from that, the management also supported the
administration's claim that traffic congestion would be eased
around the area.

Meanwhile, on the other side of Jl. Pajajaran, the new gate to
the botanical gardens, which is also the mouth of the underpass,
is nearly finished. A shelter over the gate and ticket counters
are yet to be built.

The project's management did not indicate when the underpass
would be completed.