REPUBLIKA.CO.ID,  PALEMBANG -- The South Sumatra provincial government will launch two train sets of Palembang's Light Rail Transit (LRT) on April 18, 2018. Its coaches are expected to arrive in the near future.

Of the total eight train sets ordered for the LRT, two are expected to arrive soon, Nasrun Umar, secretary of the South Sumatra provincial administration, stated here, Sunday.

The two train sets, with three coaches each, will arrive on April 13 at the Boom Baru Seaport, he remarked.

South Sumatra Governor Alex Noerdin will launch the electric LRT train sets at the Boom Baru Seaport on April 18, he added.

The Palembang LRT is expected to become operational soon, he noted.

Palembang is gearing up to implement the Asian Games 2018, and the LRT train network is expected to become operational before the games to be co-hosted by Palembang and Jakarta.

Construction of the LRT project is expected to be completed in October this year. The Transportation Ministry has entrusted state-run construction company Waskita Karya to develop the LRT system in Palembang. Waskita was appointed through a presidential regulation signed in late October 2015.

The project is worth Rp10 trillion. Length of the Palembang LRT line is 23.5 kilometers, which includes 13 stations. The travel time is expected to be shortened by 50 percent.

The normal travel time is 90 minutes. However, by using the LRT, the travel time will be reduced to only 45 minutes. The LRT project is being built ahead of the Asian Games in 2018 to cope with the congestion and traffic jams, especially during the peak hours in the city.

The LRT will facilitate the transport of thousands of athletes from all over Asia to take part in the largest sporting event in the continent.

The use of LRT during the 18th Asian Games, however, is just a short-term target, and for the long term, the LRT is expected to help support the tourism industry in the capital city of South Sumatra Province.

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