Jakarta (ANTARA) - Deputy Finance Minister Suahasil Nazara expressed confidence that the recently completed Pekanbaru-Dumai toll road section within the national strategic project -- the Trans-Sumatra toll road system -- benefited the local economy and environment.
"The central government has allocated a part of the national budget for the toll road project, so we must ensure that the toll road, constructed by Hutama Karya company, will benefit the local economy," Nazara stated while observing the Pekanbaru-Dumai toll road with President Director of toll road contractor and operator PT Hutama Karya Tbk Budi Harto and State Asset Management Agency's officials in Riau on Monday.
Nazara reiterated the government's commitment to expediting infrastructure development for the benefit of the locals and boosting economic activities in Sumatra by constructing the toll road.
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Construction of a tunnel for animals inhabiting the Balai Raja and Siak Kecil wildlife preserves that the toll road divides proved that local environmental conditions were also taken into account during the construction of the Pekanbaru-Dumai toll road project, he pointed out.
"Environmental conditions are taken into account to ensure that the animals could continue to thrive in their natural habitats," the deputy minister remarked.
The State Asset Management Agency had procured Rp328.956 billion (around US$23.026 million) funding for acquiring 2,412 land plots, spanning a total size of 7,894,368 square meters, for the toll road construction work, Nazara stated.
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According to recent research conducted by Hutama Karya, the toll road shortened the to-and-fro journey between Pekanbaru and Dumai by 51 km and reduced the travel time by three hours. The research also recorded 13 liters of fuel usage reduction for small cars and 35 liters for trucks.
The toll road has proven to improve the local residents' mobility, expedite the commodity distribution process between the two cities, and reduce pollution as vehicle fuel usage reduces, according to Nazara.
The 132-km-long toll road section of the Trans-Sumatra toll road system was completed in 2020 and connects the cities of Pekanbaru and Dumai in Riau Province.
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