A light rail transit (LRT) project in Jakarta, capital of Indonesia, will not become operational during the 2018 Asian Games, scheduled to take place between 18 August and 2 September.

LRT (Light Rail Transit) illustration. (Photo: TEMPO/Indra Fauzi)

Construction work will not be completed within the next four months to serve the event, confirmed Vice President Jusuf Kalla. He said the workload, including the building of six stations in Jakarta, is enormous.

After meeting with and reading reports from the state-owned builder of the project PT AdhiKarya, Indonesia authorities came to the decision that the LRT cannot be finished in time to support the regional sport event.

The Jakarta LRT is designed to be integrated with the MRT and Transjakarta lines, which according to Kalla, will require a lot more time to be completed.

Unlike Jakarta, Palembang, which is also a city selected to host the 2018 Asian Games, is comparatively better prepared to offerthe LRT as a means of transportation for athletes, contingents, and stakeholders.

State-owned train manufacturer PT IndustriKeretaApi has begun the delivery of the LRT to Palembang, which is expected to be operated in time to serve the games.

(Source: VNA)