JAKARTA (AFP) – Indonesia plans to start building a light rail transit system on the popular resort island of Bali next year to ease roadway congestion from the airport, a senior minister has said.
Tourist-dependent Bali attracts millions of foreign visitors annually and the beach-dotted island’s narrow roads have been clogged with traffic jams since its re-opening after the COVID-19 pandemic.
Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Pandjaitan said on Thursday the light rail transit (LRT) system would be built underground and connect the island’s international airport to popular tourist areas Canggu and Seminyak.
“LRT (in Bali) will be underground so traffic at Bali’s airport… in 2025-2026 can be managed,” he said in the capital Jakarta, according to local media reports.
He said the airport is expected to receive 24 million visitors annually by that time.
“If it’s not being done, then in 2026 we can be stuck three hours at the airport,” he told reporters.
