In contrast to rumors of stagnation, the construction project of Jakarta to Bandung high-speed railway is proceeding well and has recently made breakthroughs, Xinhuanet.com reported on May 8.

Photo taken on May 3 shows the construction site of the Walini tunnel project of the High-Speed Railway (Xinhua/ Liang Hui)

China was selected by the Indonesian Government to build the country’s first high-speed railway, linking the capital Jakarta and one of the country’s major hubs, Bandung.

Commencing in 2016, the project was previously delayed as a result of complicated land compensation issues, which slowed things down for the construction team. But now, several tunnel projects have started construction.

“Up to now, we have accelerated the land requisition and demolition, alongside making sure that project funds and loans are put in place”, said a person from China Railway, adding that both sides will work in close cooperation so as to get construction underway as soon as possible.

“China, as a major investor in the project, was still committed to the agreement although the stagnation problem was with ourselves”, claimed Maritime Affairs Coordinating Minister Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan earlier on The Jakarta Post, the largest English newspaper in Indonesia.

President Joko attends the groundbreaking ceremony, Jan 21, 2016.

President Joko requested the government evaluate the project at the beginning of this year. “Chinese firms will do the best to build a modern high-speed railway for Indonesia”, said Lu Dongfu, general manager of China Railway, when he met to inspect the construction site with the Chinese consortium from May 1 to 5. The Indonesian side expressed thanks to China for this high-speed railway technology training.

The 142-km-long railway is the first such railway in Indonesia as well as China’s first overseas high-speed rail project. The cooperative rail project under the Belt and Road Initiative adopts the technically advanced CR400 trains, and takes local climate and customs into consideration in its design.

With the highest designed speed of 350 km per hour, the Jakarta-Bandung high speed rail would shorten the travel time between the two hubs from three hours to 40 minutes and drive forward economic development along the line.