Govt expects Selat Sunda construction to start in 2014
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta - 09/01/2012
The Office of the Coordinating Minister for Political, Security and Legal Affairs announced Monday that the construction of the Sunda Straits Bridge was expected to begin in 2014.
“We fully support the government’s wish to build the bridge, but this is still early. We hope that the first post would be put up in 2014,” office spokesman Bambang Soelistyo said Monday, as quoted by kompas.com.
He said that during the meeting Coordinating Minister Djoko Suyanto asked for suggestions and listened to evaluations related to the bridge construction plan, particularly in terms of its legal and political considerations.
Bambang explained that the office had to be involved in the construction of the bridge, as it was located in a strategic area that needed to be protected.
“The Sunda Straits is a strategic area and is part of the three sea lanes of communications [SLOC] in the Indonesian archipelago. Therefore, we have an obligation to the world to guarantee the safety of international sailing without disruption,” he said.SLOC is also known by its Indonesian acronym, ALKI.
The bridge is expected to connect the country's two most populated islands, Java and Sumatra, stretching about 40 kilometers, making it the longest bridge in the country, outdoing the current Suramadu Bridge connecting Java and Madura.(awd)