Palembang, S Sumatra (ANTARA News) - The Transportation Ministry`s Directorate General of Railways revealed that though the progress of the light rail transit (LRT) construction in South Sumatra was slightly off target, it could still be finished by June 2018.

"The zone 5 of Jakabaring is ready and will be tested by the end of March or early April, as we are still waiting for the trains to arrive," the ministry`s Director General of Railways Zulfikri said during a discussion in Palembang, Monday.

According to South Sumatra LRT Infrastructure Development Commitment Officer Suranto, the construction is only 86.32 percent complete, as against the initial target of 88.32 percent, due to a number of technical factors, including the construction of the station and road repairs.

"There are some 13 stations that must be constructed parallel with the road repair work, which is also part of our responsibilities," he said.

The 13 stations include the Sultan Mahmud Badaruddin II Station, Haji Asrama Station, Telkom Station, RSUD Station, Polda Station, Station Demang Lebar Daun, Palembang Icon Station, Great Station/Kominfo, Cinde Market Station, Ampera Bridge Station, Polresta Station, Jakabaring Stadium Station and OPI Station.

"We will encourage the contractors to accelerate the development, because the deviation is large enough. We want to prevent more delays," Suranto added.

The LRT construction in South Sumatra has been undertaken with an initial investment of Rp10.9 trillion, and the additional investment is less than 10 percent of it.

Suranto noted the South Sumatra LRT was using more sophisticated technology than other urban rail systems, including minimum service standards, with more complete facilities to support Palembang as one of the host cities of the upcoming Asian Games 2018, after Jakarta.

Reported by Juwita Trisna Rahayu
(T.Y013/A/KR-BSR/A014)

Reporter: antara
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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