The plan to build a Light Rail Transit (LRT) system from Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport to North Kuta seems to be on track and gaining speed. But has the train really left the station?

South Korean expertise

An MoU between local company, PT Nindya Karya and the Korea Overseas Infrastructure & Urban Development Corporation (KIND) along with the Korea Rail Network Authority (KRNA) has recently been signed and approved by the Foreign Investment Coordination Board (BKPM) say Detik.

Underground trains

According to an official statement from Samsi Gunarta, Head of the Bali Transportation Office, the first phase of the new system will be an almost 5-kilometre underground train service running between Ngurah Rai Airport to the Jineng Hotel on Sunset Road, near the Dewa Ruci statue in North Kuta and will cost around IDR 5-trillion.

PT Angkasa Pura I, the same State Owned Enterprise that provides airport services at Ngurah Rai, plans to build a Check-in City area in North Kuta near the Jineng Hotel.

The long-term plan appears to connect the airport to Singapadu and Ubud via Legian, Seminyak, Canggu, Puspen Badung and Mengwi with an overland service.

Connecting to the north coast

It's worth noting the plan is currently under review and feasibility studies are still being prepared.

Even so, there are suggestions this initiative will eventually integrate with the proposed Denpasar to Buleleng train as well as connecting to Sanur and Renon via a light rail or Autonomous Rail Transit (ART) system being proposed by PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI), the country's major operator of public railways.

No start date has been set yet, but Kompas are reporting the first phase from the airport to north Kuta is likely to take between 18 - 24 months and other news wires believe a groundbreaking is likely to happen some time this year in 2020.

Sources: Kompas, Coconuts Bali, Detik, Indonesia Expat, Seminyak Times

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