Highways hasten urbanisation speed on Indonesia’s Java island

 A toll road on Java island (Photo: Antara)

The urbanisation progress on Java, which is home to 60 percent of the Indonesian population, will be accelerated as highways will mushroom on the world’s most populous island in the couple of years, according to the Ministry of Public Works and Housing.

At a conference held in Jakarta on September 30, Minister of Public Works and Housing Basuki Hadimuljono said the tolled highway network will be completed in the next five years, and construction is underway for new roads connecting Baten province in the northwest of Java island with Probolinggo city in East Java province.

Another tolled highway project has been planned in the south of Java island. Upon completion, it will link Gedebage district of West Java province’s Bandung city with Cilacap district in Central Java province and Yogyakarta city.

Actually, the tolled roads have created a facelift for the local economy, with increasing trade flow from Tulung Agung district and Malang city of East Java province to Tanjung Perak in Surabaya city.

Experts have said that rapid urbanisation does not affect Indonesia’s economic growth much. The World Bank estimated one percent in urbanisation growth means income per capita would rise 6-10 percent.

Currently, 137 million Indonesian people are living in urban areas, or 54 percent of the total population. The proportion of urban citizens will reach 68 percent by 2025./.

VNA