"Public transport company, especially taxi which operate at BIL, is currently growing."Mataram (ANTARA News) - The Lombok International Airport (BIL), which has been operating since October 2011 in West Nusa Tenggara (NTB), is able to boost the economy of people in the province, according to an official.
"Since the operation of the airport, the number of tourist visits to West Nusa Tenggara, particularly Lombok district, continues to rise," local Transportation and Communication Office spokesman Ridwan Syah said here on Wednesday.
He noted that the fulfillment of the target of one million tourists, set in the program of Visit Lombok Sumbawa (VLS) 2012 was inseparable from the presence of BIL.
Ridwan said the existence of Lombok International Airport was also a decisive factor in the realization of the visit to the province by one million tourist.
Another indicator, according to him, is that there is a significant increase of plane landings and takes off at the new airport.
"When the airport was in Selaparang, Mataram, there were only 48 landings and takes off per day, but now at the Lombok International Airport it increases sharply by 160 per day," Ridwan noted.
Besides, he added that the presence of the new airport has also helped increase business activity in public transport and food merchants around the aerodrome.
"Public transport company, especially taxi which operate at BIL, is currently growing," Ridwan said, adding that around 115 units of taxi and rented cars are now operating at the airport.
(T.E002/O001)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2013
