New rail project starts next year

New rail project starts next year

JAKARTA (JP): The construction of a light rail line that will link Pondok Labu in South Jakarta with Kota Station in North Jakarta will start next year, Director General of Highway Construction Soeharsono Martakim said yesterday.

Soeharsono said that the draft plan of the project, which is called the Light Rapid Transit (LRT) system, is now in its final stages.

The LRT is to be built by PT Citra Lamtoro Gung, a company owned by President Soeharto's eldest daughter, Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana.

The company plans to construct a freeway alongside the line, Soeharsono said.

He said the LRT will intersect with the freeway at a ring road in Lebak Bulus, not far from Pondok Labu.

Speaking after delivering a speech at a seminar on subway development, Soeharsono said construction work on the LRT will commence before work begins on the planned Blok M-Kota subway project.

The subway project is to be constructed by a consortium of Japanese and European companies.

Soeharsono said the government is giving priority to the construction of the LRT because more thorough preparations are needed for the subway, which will be Indonesia's first.

Unlike the LRT, the subway will require a number of supporting systems, including ventilation, lighting, fire control, communications and drainage, Soeharsono said.

The first phase of the subway project will be the construction of a 14-kilometer tunnel linking Jl. Sudirman and Jl. Gajah Mada, passing beneath the Jl. M.H. Thamrin and Harmoni area. The project is expected to cost Rp 200 billion (approximately US$87.7 million) per km.

He said the construction of the LRT and the subway should not affect traffic flow or cleanliness in the city. (03)