JAKARTA, Aug 26 (Bernama): The second phase of Jakarta North South Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) project has been hit by cost overrun due to the complexity of the construction and unstable land conditions.
Cost of the 12.3 kilometres MRT project serving the Hotel Indonesia Roundabout-Ancol route rose to 26 trillion rupiah (US$1=14,828 rupiah) from the initial 22.5 trillion rupiah, according to Indonesia's economic minister.
"The MRT line is crossing the heritage area of Kota Tua, hence we have to be more careful in constructing the structure,” its coordinating economic minister, Airlangga Hartarto said in a statement.
Kota Tua or Old City, is a neighborhood comprising the original downtown area of the capital city and the first walled settlement of the Dutch in the 17th century.
Airlangga said the 12.3 kilometres long MRT line is entirely underground, different from the first phase project, which is 15.7 kilometres comprising 5.7 kilometres underground and 10 kilometres elevated.
The first phase has been operating since March 24, 2019.
The government is also in the midst of looking for a new end point site in other parts of Ancol and the Marina area, as there has been land acquisition problems in the proposed site in West Ancol.
The MRT phase two project comprises two stages, namely phases 2A and 2B, with Phase 2A comprising of seven underground stations - Thamrin, Monas, Harmoni, Sawah Besar, Mangga Besar, Glodok, and Kota - spanning 5.8 kilometres.
The Kota-Ancol route under the Phase 2B is currently undergoing feasibility study by the city-owned project operator, PT MRT Jakarta. - Bernama
