Consortium to build $1.36 Jakarta subway
Consortium to build $1.36 Jakarta subway
JAKARTA (JP): The government will form a consortium of state- owned companies, city-owned companies as well as foreign and local private companies to finance the construction of a subway system linking Blok M and the downtown (Kota) area.
Governor Surjadi Soedirdja said in a City Council meeting last week that to build a subway system the government needs a great deal of funding, too much for the state and city budgets alone.
The governor said it is time to build the system and provide better public transportation, which will hopefully handle the stifling traffic problems in the city. "The only way is to form a consortium to finance the project."
The construction of the subway, approved by President Soeharto last February, will cost about US$ 1.3 billion.
According to the proposal made for the project, the development, operation and maintenance of the subway system will be handled by public company Jakarta Metro Corporation (JMC) under a build-operate-own plan.
JMC will provide capital for the 14-kilometer subway, of which 30 percent of US$1.3 billion will be JMC equity. The rest will be in loans.
About 30 percent of the equity will be invested by the government, through state and city-owned companies, while the rest will be covered by private companies.
Head of the City Development Planning Board Ery Chajaridipura said yesterday that despite the high cost of investment, the city administration will set the ticket fares at prices reasonable for the majority of Jakartans.
Investment
"It is not easy to set a price and I think it is too early to do so because we have to calculate the investment of the project as well as inflation and other things," Ery told The Jakarta Post.
The proposal, which was made by the city administration, the Agency for Assessment and Application of Technology and the Ministries of Transportation and Public Works, has tentatively set a fare of Rp 1,800.
The government also expects to get back its investment through road pricing, ticket fares, peripheral businesses, parking fares and contributions from the communities along roads like Sudirman, Thamrin, Gajahmada and Hayam Wuruk.
The development of the subway system will be started in late 1996 and is expected to start operation in the year 2000.
There will be about 15 stations in Kota, Glodok, Mangga Besar, Sawah Besar, Harmoni, Monumen Nasional, KH Wahid Hasyim, Hotel Indonesia, Dukuh Atas, Setiabudi, Karet, Senayan, Senopati, Blok M and Panglima Polim.
Each station will be equipped with various facilities and commercial centers.
The government plans to extend the subway system from Kota station in West Jakarta to the upcoming Jakarta Waterfront City in North Jakarta, which, planners hope, will speed up development in the new areas.(yns)