PUPR Minister Requested Manado-Bitung Toll Road Construction To Be Accelerated

MANADO - Basuki Hadimuljono, The Minister of Public Works and Housing (PUPR)  instructed to accelerate the construction of Manado - Bitung toll road along the 39 Km.

Therefore he asked the construction contractor to add equipment and labour and maximize the work on the land that has been acquired due to the land acquisition progress as a whole has reached 75,86 percent.

Basuki Hadimuljono believes that the construction of this toll road can be completed faster because the land condition there does not require special handling as in some Trans Sumatera and Trans Java toll roads.

Manado-Bitung Toll is one of the national strategic projects (PSN) of President Joko Widodo and Vice President Jusuf Kalla to increase connectivity, so it could lower logistics costs. The toll is targeted to be operated by 2019.

"The presence of Manado-Bitung Toll increases the smoothness of Bitung International Port access as one of the import-export doors for eastern Indonesia. This will shorten the traffic of goods and services that previously had to go through the Port of Tanjung Priok, Jakarta. It will also support the development of the Special Economic Zone (KEK) Bitung," said PUPR Minister Basuki Hadimuljono as reported from pu.go.id (15/11/2017).

The Manado-Bitung toll road is built with the scheme of government cooperation and business entity (KPBU) where from 39 km, Section 1 along 14 km Manado-Sukur-Airmadidi is done through APBN and Chinese Government Loans and Section 2 along 25 km Airmadidi-Bitung whose concession rights are owned by the toll road business entity (BUJT) of PT. Jasa Marga Manado Bitung with investment cost reached Rp 5,12 trillion.