Subway project approved

Subway project approved

JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto instructed Transportation
Minister Haryanto Dhanutirto yesterday to go ahead with the
building of a subway and an elevated railway to help ease the
increasingly chaotic traffic in the capital.

The President's instruction ended a lengthy controversy on
whether there should be an underground or elevated system in the
Mass Rapid Transit development in Jakarta, which has a population
of about nine million.

Haryanto told reporters after meeting with the President that
the construction of the subway will be tendered, while that of
the elevated railway will be awarded to PT Citra Lamtoro Gung
Persada which is owned by Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana.

The minister said that the basic design for the subway is
currently being prepared by a project management unit assigned by
the government in cooperation with the National Development
Planning Board and the Jakarta administration.

"The construction of the subway, which will link Blok M in
South Jakarta and downtown Kota in West Jakarta, is expected to
start early next year as soon as the design is completed followed
by its tender," he said.

A number of consortia from France, Canada, Japan, the United
States, Germany and Australia have reportedly expressed interest
in participating in the tender for the construction of the subway
project, which is estimated to cost over US$1 billion.

Haryanto said that the construction of the elevated railway,
which will cost about $800 million, will be wholly financed by PT
Citra Lamtoro Gung.

"The elevated railway will link Cinere and Kebayoran Lama,
both in South Jakarta, and will later be operated by the state
railway company Perusahaan Umum Kereta Api under a joint
operation scheme," he said.

Under such a scheme, there will be a technical unit whose
president will be a railway employee, while the financial
director will be from PT Citra Lamtoro Gung, he said.

According to the minister, the elevated railway will operate
between Kebayoran Lama and Cinere through Pondok Indah and Lebak
Bulus and not between Kota and Cinere as was reported previously.

Siti Hardiyanti Rukmana is the President's eldest daughter.
(hhr)