Jakarta. The Jakarta administration is racing to complete repairs on major roads across the capital before the Asia Africa Summit in Jakarta and Bandung kicks off on April 19.

Suko Wibowo, maintenance chief at the Jakarta Public Works Office, said workers were fixing potholes along the main avenues of Jalan Sudirman, Gatot Subroto and Rasuna Said in South Jakarta, and M.H. Thamrin, Central Jakarta.

“We have deployed six teams to these areas,” Suko said on Friday.

The agency is targeting to finish the repairs by April 10, he added.

The government has also requested Mass Rapid Transit Jakarta, the company building the capital’s underground rail line along Jalan Sudirman and Thamrin, to put up fences around its construction sites and cover them with conference-related posters.

Suko said his teams would expedite the roadwork, working between 11 p.m. and 5 a.m., to avoid exacerbating the already heavy traffic along major streets.

“For work on [Jalan] Gatot Subroto, we are getting help from the Public Works Ministry,” he said.

Repairs on Jalan Medan Merdeka Utara and the Lapangan Banteng area in Central Jakarta have been completed.

The government is also refurbishing public parks around the area and adding decorative street lights.

Suko said Jakarta Governor Basuki Tjahaja Purnama had bypassed the protracted deliberation of the capital’s budget to finance the roadwork and refurbishment.

The governor issued a decree last year allowing the public works office to use Rp 60 billion ($4.6 million) from last year’s budget for the endeavor.

Meanwhile, part of Jalan Sudirman will be closed from 10 p.m. on Sunday to 5 a.m. on Monday, to clear the area for the planned demolition of a pedestrian crossing bridge in front of Chase Plaza in Setiabudi, South Jakarta, said Jakarta Transportation Office chief Benjamin Bukit.

The MRT builders plan to construct a new bridge nearby to integrate the Setiabudi TransJakarta bus shelter with a future MRT station.

During the demolition, southbound traffic from the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle will be redirected to Dukuh Bawah, South Jakarta, from 10 p.m. to 1:30 a.m.

As workers demolish the opposite end of the overhead crossing bridge, northbound traffic heading to the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle will be rerouted to Jalan K.H. Mas Mansyur in Central Jakarta, before connecting to Sudirman near the BNI 46 tower.

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Source: The Jakarta Globe