PU Develops Plan for Temporary Housing Construction for Railway Trackside Residents, Targeting 1,000 Units

The government is preparing the construction of temporary housing (huntara) for residents living along railway tracks, targeting around 1,000 units. This programme is still in the cross-ministerial discussion stage, including the Ministry of Public Works (PU), and will be adjusted to the available land conditions.

This was stated by Minister of PU Dody Hanggodo. He said that the plan for building huntara is being developed together with several parties, including the Ministry of State Secretariat, the Cabinet Secretariat, and the Directorate General of Railways as the landowner.

“The plan is to build residential houses, for around a thousand houses. We have been discussing it together with the relevant ministries, the Minister of State Secretary, the Cabinet Secretary, and the one who owns the land is the Director General of Railways,” said Dody when met by journalists at the Rest Area KM 379 Batang, Semarang, Central Java, on Friday, 28 March 2026.

He explained that to date, the government is still delving into the details of the location and land characteristics before entering the design stage. This is necessary to ensure sufficient land for the construction of 1,000 huntara units.

“This is something I will discuss in more detail, which land it is, what the shape of the land is like, how extensive it is, then we will do the design,” he said.

Dody added that the huntara design will be adjusted to the land area. If the land is limited, construction may be done vertically with a modular concept.

“We estimate that for a thousand units, will the land provided be sufficient for a thousand units, or do we have to modify the temporary housing, we have to build upwards, like what we are doing in IKN,” he said.

He assured that the planned huntara buildings will not be too high. “If modular, the highest is 3-4 floors. Like in IKN,” he said.

Regarding the location, Dody mentioned the area around Tanah Abang with an estimated land of around three hectares. However, he emphasised that the certainty of the location is still awaiting further coordination with PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI).

In addition to the plan along the railway tracks, the Ministry of PU is also continuing the construction of huntara in several regions, including Aceh. Dody said that the construction progress is dynamic due to additional requests from local governments and the National Disaster Management Agency (BNPB).