Eight flyovers to be opened this year

JAKARTA (JP): The city's traffic problems may be partially solved with the completion of eight flyovers and one underpass this year, an official said yesterday.

The official from the Municipal Public Works Office, who requested anonymity, added that the Dukuh Atas underpass and flyovers in the Sudirman, Senen, Pramuka, Kampung Melayu areas will be ready for use this year.

"The construction of the Sudirman flyover was completed several months ago, while the Pramuka and Kampung Melayu flyovers will be ready in August," he said.

The Sudirman flyover connecting Jl. Dr. Satrio and Jl. KH Mas Mansyur is 165 meters long and 17.7 meters wide.

According to Widodo, the supervisor of Dukuh Atas construction, the underpass will connect the west and east sides of Jl. Inspeksi by a tunnel under Jl. Sudirman.

The tunnel will measure 50.85 meters long, 20.30 meters wide and about seven meters high.

The Dukuh Atas project, which is expected to be inaugurated by Governor Surjadi Soedirdja next month, cost Rp 9.8 billion (US$4.6 million).

The other flyovers at the Kebayoran Lama junction and Jl. Tendean, both in South Jakarta, Jl. Anggrek Nelly Murni, and Jl. Putri Hijau, will also be completed this year.

Soeharto, chief of the public works office, said earlier that the Senen, Pramuka and Kampung Melayu flyovers are 75 percent financed by loans from the World Bank and 25 percent by the city. The Tendean and Kebayoran Lama flyovers are financed by funds from the state and the city budgets.

The Kampung Melayu flyover is 36 meters wide and 1,300 meters long. It includes a 600 meter-long bridge over the Jatinegara- Otista junction. The project is estimated to cost Rp 18 billion ($8.5 million).

The 570-meter-long Senen flyover project cost Rp 13.3 billion ($6.3 million). At 17 meters high, it is the highest flyover in the city as it runs over the bridge at the Kramat Bunder-Senen Raya junction.

The Pramuka flyover, which is being constructed over the Matraman-Salemba-Pramuka junction, is estimated to cost Rp 8.2 billion ($3.8 million). (03)