The groundbreaking stage of the Bali LRT project is scheduled to commence in September 2024. The Indonesian Minister of Transportation, Budi Karya Sumadi, disclosed details about the first phase of the LRT on Friday, 2nd February 2024. This initial phase will involve connecting Ngurah Rai Airport to Kuta.
“We will construct an LRT, starting from the airport to Kuta, Legian, then to Mengwi. However, this time, the focus will be on reaching Kuta first. The larger expansion will proceed towards Kuta,” Budi added, as quoted by DetikFinance. The funding for the Bali LRT construction system is sourced from loans from South Korea, following a feasibility study agreement with a similar scheme to the MRT.
View this post on Instagram
Budi also emphasized that introducing public transportation in Bali aims to address traffic congestion issues prevalent on weekdays and during peak holiday seasons. “In the long term, we will establish LRT connections in Bali from the airport to various points where traffic congestion is significant, such as Sunset Road, Legian, and Canggu,” stated Budi Karya in his announcement on 29th December 2023.
Budi anticipates that the government will require approximately 3 to 4 years to finalize the Bali LRT project. According to information gathered from various sources, the Bali LRT will be constructed underground, considering the island’s geographical conditions.
The Bali LRT project gained significant attention in 2023, with the public and tourists expressing enthusiasm for introducing public transportation in Bali. The Bali government is actively preparing various infrastructures to transform Bali into a tourist-friendly destination with accessible public transportation.
Given the current reliance on private vehicles like cars and motorcycles due to the lack of public transportation facilities in Bali, the region has experienced a surge in traffic accidents, exacerbated by the high volume of tourist visits.
As per the data from Bali police, 7,224 traffic accident cases were recorded, with the Denpasar area having the highest count at 2,245 cases, followed by Gianyar with 1,073 cases. Among these incidents, there were 632 fatalities, marking a 25.89% increase from 2022, when there were 502 deaths. Most accident victims were motorbike riders, and the highest frequency of accidents happened between 6 AM and 6 PM local time.
