Hello and welcome to the details of Indonesia launches SE Asia's first high-speed rail and now with the details
Nevin Al Sukari - Sana'a - Indonesian President Joko Widodo (centre) accompany by Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan (third left), State Secretary Pratikno (second right) and Minister of State-Owned Enterprises Erick Thohir (right), answers journalists questions during the inauguration of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train named 'Whoosh' at Padalarang station in Padalarang, West Java on October 2, 2023. — AFP pic
JAKARTA, Oct 2 — Indonesia launched Southeast Asia's first high-speed railway today, a delayed, multibillion-dollar project backed by China that President Joko Widodo hailed as "a symbol of our modernisation".
With a top speed of 350 kilometres (220 miles) per hour, the bullet train "Whoosh" can get between the capital Jakarta and Bandung in 45 minutes.
The 140 km journey would previously have taken about three hours by train.
"The Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train marks our efficient, friendly, and integrated mass transportation system," Widodo said during a ceremony at the capital's central station.
"It is a symbol of our modernisation in the public transport, seamlessly connecting with other modes of transportation."
Widodo said the 600-capacity train was the first high-speed rail transportation in Southeast Asia.
It is part of Beijing's Belt and Road initiative — a decade-old programme of China-backed infrastructure projects.
The president said the name was actually an acronym, standing for a tagline of "Waktu Hemat, Operasi Optimal, Sistem Handal" — which in Bahasa Indonesia means "Saving time, optimal operation, reliable system".
It was built by PT KCIC, which is made up of four Indonesian state companies and Beijing's China Railway International Co.
The project was initially set to cost less than US$5 billion and be completed by 2019.
However, delays caused by construction challenges and the Covid-19 pandemic led to a surge in costs.
In preparation for its opening, officials have conducted public trials for the new high-speed route.
Last week, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi confirmed that the government would extend the high-speed train route from Bandung to the country's second-biggest city Surabaya.
Last month, Chinese Premier Li Qiang joined Senior Minister Luhut Pandjaitan on a ride aboard the train during his Jakarta visit for summits with Southeast Asian leaders.
Pandjaitan told reporters on Thursday that Widodo plans to welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping in the future to ride the train, but did not give more specifics. — AFP
These were the details of the news Indonesia launches SE Asia's first high-speed rail for this day. We hope that we have succeeded by giving you the full details and information. To follow all our news, you can subscribe to the alerts system or to one of our different systems to provide you with all that is new.
It is also worth noting that the original news has been published and is available at Malay Mail and the editorial team at AlKhaleej Today has confirmed it and it has been modified, and it may have been completely transferred or quoted from it and you can read and follow this news from its main source.
