KBRN, Jakarta: The Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) continues to accelerate the construction of the Kertajati West Java International Airport (BIJB) Access toll road which is connected to the Cikampek - Palimanan (Cipali) toll road.

BIJB Kertajati access is important to support the development of a triangle of economic growth areas, namely Patimban Port in Subang Regency, Kertajati Airport in Majalengka Regency, and areas in Bekasi, Karawang, and Purwakarta as an industrial area that is interconnected and mutually supportive for competitiveness.

This was in accordance with President Joko Widodo's direction in a Limited Meeting (Ratas) discussing the acceleration of the Patimban National Strategic Project (PSN) on Tuesday, September 22, 2020. The President instructed the Minister of PUPR Basuki Hadimuljono to monitor and ensure the completion of the construction of the toll road connecting Kertajati with Bandung, West Java, which can operate by the end of 2021 or no later than 2022.

The Kertajati BIJB Access Development is an addition to the scope of the Cipali Toll Road. The toll road with a length of 3.38 km will be built an additional 7 ramps which will connect the airport with the Cikampek - Palimanan (Cipali) and Cileunyi - Sumedang - Dawuan (Cisumdawu) Toll Roads.

PUPR Minister Basuki Hadimuljono said, with the construction of the Airport Access Toll Road for the next one year along with the target of completing the construction of the Cisumdawu Toll Road by the end of 2021, it is hoped that it will support connectivity to the airport so that it contributes to developing the Kertajati area.

"With the completion of the Cisumdawu Toll Road and connected to the Kertajati Airport access toll road, it will reduce the travel time from Bandung by about 3 hours to 1 hour. With increased connectivity, airport operations will also increase and be more competitive, so it is expected to replace Husein Airport. Sastranegara in Bandung, "said Basuki in his statement, Wednesday (30/12/2020).

The construction of an access toll road to BIJB Kertajati which is connected to the Cipali Toll Road starts from KM 158 + 700. Technically, the main toll road has 4 lanes for two directions with a width of 3.6 meters. Meanwhile, the access ramp has a lane width of 4 meters, equipped with 2 bridges.

The construction of this toll road has been built since the work contract on September 28, 2020, with an implementation period of 305 calendar days. The development progress until December 20, 2020 has reached 34.72% or faster than the plan of 34.61%. The construction was carried out by PT. Lintas Marga Sedaya as the concession holder and also PT Pembangunan Perumahan (Persero) and PT ACSET Indonusa Tbk. as the executing contractor with a project value of Rp.692 billion.

"The existence of this toll road is expected to facilitate and accelerate access to Kertajati Airport, which currently uses arterial roads. In addition, it is also expected to increase connectivity and develop the economic potential of the surrounding area as well as provide job opportunities during construction and after operation," he concluded.