Monorail developer warns of more traffic woes ahead
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
As the monorail construction work started again after it stopped for months, the project developer made a public apology on Monday for the traffic disruption it has caused, suggesting the public avoid the affected streets.
This week, PT Jakarta Monorail simultaneously started work from Jl. Palmerah to Jl. Pejompongan, Central Jakarta, from Jl. Karet Pasar Baru, Central Jakarta, to Jl. HR Rasuna Said, South Jakarta, and from the Ambassador Mall in South Jakarta to Jl. KH Mas Mansyur in Central Jakarta.
"The construction definitely affects the traffic. We apologize for the inconvenience caused ... we will cooperate with the City Transportation Agency to help reroute traffic in those spots," technical head of the monorail project, R. Bovanantoo, told a media briefing here on Monday.
Aside from the three locations, the consortium also continued with construction work on Jl. Asia Afrika on Monday.
The Jakarta administration urged investors last week to go ahead with the project as there was no significant progress seen since it started in June.
PT Jakarta Monorail director Sukmawaty Syukur argued that the company had to make some changes in the project.
"We don't want to rush in without an accurate blueprint," she asserted.
Since the groundbreaking ceremony presided over by president Megawati Soekarnoputri, the consortium has made several major changes in the monorail route.
It had altered the Blue Line route to Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta, - Mal Taman Anggrek, West Jakarta, from the initial Kampung Melayu - Roxy shopping center route.
The company has also rerouted its Green Line through prime business areas -- Kuningan, Sudirman and Senayan -- as the State Secretary opposed the use of the Bung Karno Sports Complex in Senayan.
Sukmawaty denied that the project had hit a snag due to financial problems as most foreign investors had yet to disburse their funds for the project.
However, she admitted that some foreign financial institutions, like the Asian Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank and the Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) had requested the company to complete some documents required to process the loans.
"Those documents include several gubernatorial decrees on the area used for the monorail project," she said.
Despite the obstructions, the company said that it would be able to finish the project on time.
The Green Line is to be finished by the end of 2006, while the Blue Line in early 2007.