Prabowo allocates Rp4 trillion to repair 1,800 railway crossings in Java

Jakarta (ANTARA) - President of the Republic of Indonesia Prabowo Subianto has prepared a budget of around Rp4 trillion to repair 1,800 railway crossing points on Java island to improve public transportation safety. “We estimate around almost Rp4 T, Rp4 trillion, for safety,” said President Prabowo while visiting victims of a train accident at Chasbullah Abdulmadjid Hospital in Bekasi City on Tuesday. The President explained that the thousands of crossing points are inherited infrastructure from the Dutch era that has not received comprehensive maintenance for decades. According to Prabowo, this step is taken because the government realises that many railway crossings still lack guards, making them prone to accidents. Prabowo has instructed his subordinates to immediately resolve the issue with two handling schemes, namely the construction of guard posts or the creation of flyover bridges. “I will order that we immediately repair all those crossings, whether by setting up guard posts or with flyovers; the implementation will be assigned later,” he stated. Specifically for the Bekasi area, the President has approved the construction of a flyover through a presidential assistance scheme due to the very urgent traffic density conditions. The Bekasi Regional Government had previously proposed the construction of thousands of metres of flyover to minimise accident risks at vulnerable points. The President emphasised that the large budget must be disbursed now, considering the importance of trains as a mass transportation mode for the public. This handling is targeted to resolve safety issues at level crossings that have been neglected for nearly 80 years since independence. Based on the latest data as of 08.45 WIB, the electric train and commuter train accident in the Bekasi Timur Station area resulted in 14 deaths and 84 injuries. PT Kereta Api Indonesia (Persero) has assured that all medical treatment costs for the injured victims and funeral costs for the deceased will be fully covered by insurance and KAI. Currently, the injured victims have been evacuated to several health facilities, including Bekasi Hospital, Kramat Jati Police Hospital for identification processes, and several private hospitals in the Bekasi area. As a form of emergency service, KAI has also opened an Emergency Response Post and an Information Post at Bekasi Timur Station to assist victims’ families in obtaining valid information regarding passenger conditions and handling of customers’ belongings.