The Indonesian government has decided to select Japan as its partner in the revitalization of the railway connecting Jakarta and Surabaya, East Java. The project aims to increase the speed of the rail connecting the two cities, from around 90 kilometers per hour to 160 kilometers per hour.
The preliminary feasibility study for the project is slated to start in May. “There will be joint study with Japan and we hope that [the construction] will finish in the fourth quarter of 2019,” Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan said.
The government will consider two schemes for the construction: eradicating level grade crossings or constructing elevated railways, or a combination of the two schemes, depending on conditions on the ground, Office of the Coordinating Maritime Affairs Minister deputy of infrastructure coordination Ridwan Djamaludin said.
The government is also still considering the technology that will power the trains: diesel, which will cost Rp 30 trillion (USD2.2 billion), or electricity with its Rp 80 trillion (USD5.8 billion) price tag.
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