Aceh’s toll roads should be connected to tourism centers: Jokowi

JAKARTA, Aug 25, 2020, ANTARA. President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) emphasized that the main corridor of the Trans-Sumatra toll road sections in Aceh must be integrated with and connected to the province’s tourism and agricultural centers, as well as industrial areas, ANTARA reported.

Thus, the people, at large, could optimally benefit from the construction of the toll road sections in Indonesia’s westernmost province, he stated in connection with the inauguration of the Banda Aceh-Sigli Toll Road Section 4 on Tuesday.

President Jokowi echoed his aspirations that with the presence of the toll roads, Aceh would be able to emerge as a new epicenter of Sumatra Island’s economic growth.

The head of state also highlighted the significance of involving micro, small, and medium enterprises in the province’s economic development to enable them to benefit from the development.

On Tuesday, President Jokowi inaugurated the Sigli-Blang Bintang Toll Road as the section 4 of the 74-kilometer-long Banda Aceh-Sigli Toll Road.

This first toll road section in Aceh Province is part of the Trans-Sumatra toll road construction project.

Since the first and second leadership terms of President Jokowi, infrastructure has held special significance, with the remarkable extension of toll roads being testament to it.

According to the Public Works and Housing Ministry, during President Jokowi’s first leadership term, at least 941 kilometers of toll roads and 3,423 kilometers of national roads were constructed.

Work on the Trans-Java Highway that connects the ferry port in Merak, Banten Province, to Surabaya, the capital city of East Java Province, is complete, thereby reducing the travel time and current logistics costs.

As part of the central government’s prioritized development projects, the toll roads are not merely constructed in Java, but they are also built outside the island, such as in Sumatra, Kalimantan, and Sulawesi.

In Sumatra Island, several sections of the Trans-Sumatra Toll Road have been completed, while the government is eyeing to complete entire sections in 2024.

Work on the Trans-Sumatra Toll Road Construction project is still underway. State-owned construction companies involved in the project have striven ceaselessly to ensure it is completed in line with the set target.