Despite earlier officials stating that construction of the railway on Bali would begin at the beginning of the year, no miracle occurred. Nevertheless, we now have a new start date for construction. Indonesian Minister of Transportation Budi Karya Sumadi confirmed that the groundbreaking for the Bali metro will commence in September 2024. During a press conference in Jakarta, he stated that despite the rescheduled start date, all plans remain unchanged.
The first LRT route will connect Bali's international airport with the central parking area in Kuta, and later, the LRT will extend to Seminyak and reach Canggu, totaling 20 kilometers. The initial construction phase will be financed by investments from a South Korean company, which is also funding the yet-to-be-completed technical and economic feasibility study. The Bali railway network will be operated as a joint venture between the Bali provincial government, with a 51% stake, and the Indonesian government, holding a 49% stake. The Minister of Transportation added, "In the long term, we will build LRT trains in Bali from the airport to several points with the most intense traffic, such as Sunset Road, Legian, and Canggu."
He also mentioned that the development plan for the Bali LRT is currently in the final stages of completing the technical and economic feasibility study, prepared by the Korean National Railroad with grant financing from Korea Exim Bank. They began preparing the feasibility study in January, and its completion is expected in April.
The choice of the airport route as the first line is due to the fact that if the traffic problem from the airport is not resolved in the near future, the continuously growing flow of tourists will severely impact traffic in this area, which will, of course, affect Sunset Road traffic.
"If this (LRT) is not done, by 2026 Ngurah Rai Airport will be in a difficult situation because the number of passengers at that time will be 24 million people," noted the Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan. Bali authorities also agree. Sang Made Mahendra, acting governor, also prioritizes the construction of the line from the airport to Seminyak through the Central Parking Kuta.
The construction of the first line is estimated to take three to four years, unless the newly elected president intervenes with different views on Bali's infrastructure development. In particular, during a meeting with his constituents in northern Bali, he raised the issue of transportation and his intention to include the northern Bali airport in the list of presidential projects.
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