New flyovers to ease Tanah Abang traffic
New flyovers to ease Tanah Abang traffic
JAKARTA (JP): Tanah Abang in Central Jakarta, one of the
city's most congested areas will be free of traffic jams in June
when the construction of an underpass and three flyovers is
completed, the head of the city public works agency said
yesterday.
The official, Soeharto, said the underpass and flyovers would
be opened on June 22, the city's 470th anniversary. The roads
were part of city's 1992 to 1997 masterplan.
"With the inauguration of the flyovers and the underpass, the
Tanah Abang area will be free from congestion," Soeharto said
after a city executives meeting.
Furthermore, the flyovers would allow motorists to avoid
driving through highly congested streets during the wet season,
he said.
The four-lane 525-meter underpass is on Jl. Fachruddin.
The three flyovers are on Jl. K.S. Tubun, Jl. K.H. Mas
Mansyur, and Jl. Cideng. The flyovers are between 450 meters and
600 meters long and between 16 meters and 17 meters wide.
"Several traffic problems in Tanah Abang, caused mainly by the
sidewalk vendors who take up spaces on the street, can be
eliminated," Soeharto said.
However, the effort to improve traffic in the area should be
followed by operations to curb sidewalk vendors, he said.
Public works agency data shows the underpass and flyovers are
among 25 flyovers and underpass projects in the city's 1992-1997
master plan.
Of the 25 flyovers and underpass projects, 19 have been
completed. All projects, which the Ministry of Public Works and
the city administration financed, are scheduled to be completed
by the end of this year.
Governor Surjadi Soedirdja said in his recent end-of-year
evaluation that he could not predict when the city would be free
from traffic problems.
He blamed the slow construction of new roads, which could not
match the speed at which the number of vehicles increased, as the
main reason for the city's unsolvable traffic problems.
The latest figures show vehicles have increased by 14 percent
annually while the length of the roads only increased by 4
percent.
The city is now home to nine million people with 2,165,200
vehicles. Jakarta has 5,907.95 kilometers of road. (02/ste)