Pandjaitan made the statement while observing the construction work of the fishing port in Yogyakarta on Friday.
Maritime Affairs and Fisheries Minister Sakti Wahyu Trenggono, Public Works Minister Budi Karya Sumadi, Yogyakarta Governor Sri Sultan Hamengkubuwono, and Kulon Progo District Head Sutejo accompanied Pandjaitan during the visit.
Pandjaitan chaired the ministerial-level coordination meeting held on Wednesday in the first week of March, in which the attendees comprised officials of the Yogyakarta administration. At the meeting, it was decided to integrate the development plans in Yogyakarta's southern coast with those in the surrounding areas: Tanjung Adikarto fishing port, the YIA, and the Yogyakarta South Coast area.
The government is currently constructing an airport railway for connecting YIA with Kedundang, the downtown of Yogyakarta, which is expected to reduce travel time by land, from an hour and a half to just 39 minutes.
The construction work is 85-percent complete, and it is scheduled to be ready this year.
An area of 133,321 square meters is required for the airport train project. The departure time interval between trains will be 30 minutes and is targeted to carry 3,800 passengers per day.
The airport train is expected to be inaugurated for official operation on Aug 17, 2021.
The YIA, that is 13 times larger than its old Adisucipto Airport, was inaugurated on Aug 28, 2020, by President Joko Widodo (Jokowi).
Best construction practices were claimed to be applied in building the YIA, which took just 20 months and cost Rp11.3 trillion (some US$777.4 million).
The new airport has a 3,250-meter runway, longer than the old Adisucipto Airport's runway measuring 2,200 meters. Wide-bodied aircraft, such as Airbus A330 and Boeing 777, can land at the new airport.
It has a 219 thousand square-meter terminal, as compared to 17 thousand square meters at the old airport's terminal. It has a capacity to accommodate 20 million passengers yearly, as compared to 1.6 million yearly at the old airport. Related news: Jokowi adjudges YIA construction practice as best in Indonesia
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Translator: Ade Irma Junida, Fardah
Editor: Gusti Nur Cahya Aryani
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
