Jakarta JPO Collapses After Truck Collision, Billions in Damages Expected

The pedestrian bridge (JPO) on Jalan Kapten P Tendean, South Jakarta, was demolished after being hit by a truck carrying heavy equipment or a crane in the early hours of this week. The damages incurred from the incident are estimated to be in the billions of rupiah and caused significant traffic congestion during the recovery efforts. "There is no definitive figure yet (for the JPO's construction cost) because the technical planning is still ongoing. However, the material losses from this damage are already estimated to be in the billions of rupiah. The final cost (of building the JPO) will depend on the design, specifications, and the results of the study," said Chico Hakim, Special Staff to the Governor of DKI Jakarta for Public Communication, to reporters on Thursday (16/7), as quoted from detik.com. Hakim stated that the plan to rebuild the Tendean JPO will utilize the Regional Revenue and Expenditure Budget (APBD). However, the DKI Jakarta Provincial Government will also seek funding through Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). "The primary source is the DKI Jakarta APBD, in line with the Provincial Government's responsibility for public infrastructure maintenance. We are also in discussions regarding the accountability of the company that owns the truck. If there is private support through CSR or other mechanisms, we will certainly consider it to expedite the process, but the priority remains the APBD and the recovery of state assets," he said. Furthermore, Hakim conveyed that the technical plan for rebuilding the Tendean JPO is being compiled. The plan includes adding safety measures for high-load cargo at the JPO. "The Bina Marga Agency is compiling the technical plan (including in-depth studies and a safer design, such as adding high-load cargo security) in accordance with applicable regulations," said Chico. "This process will take time to ensure the new JPO is sturdier, pedestrian-friendly, and prevents similar incidents from occurring," he added. Previously, the JPO on Jalan Kapten Tendean suffered severe damage after being hit by a crane truck in the early hours of Tuesday (14/7) WIB. As a result of the incident, traffic flow around the location was temporarily rerouted before returning to normal by that evening. From preliminary examination by authorities, it is suspected that the truck driver was using a mobile phone at the time of the incident. Later, Andre (28), the truck driver, admitted that he was focusing on an online map application at the time of the incident. "We are, we are 2 kilometers away from arriving. We were focused on looking at Maps," said Andre when met at the scene on Tuesday (14/7). Andre admitted he was passing through JPO Tendean for the first time. He confessed he did not know about the conditions of Jalan Tendean. "This is the first time (passing through Tendean), (before) I didn't know," he said. Andre said the truck he was driving came from the direction of Bogor. He admitted the heavy equipment he was carrying was to be delivered to the Attorney General's Office (Kejagung) in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta. "Going to deliver it to this, the Attorney General's (Office). From Summarecon Bogor," he said. As a result of the collision, the JPO was tilted – nearly collapsing – and the truck with the crane it was carrying was seen stuck underneath. The accident occurred early Tuesday morning, around 00:30 WIB. The accident site was on Jalan Tendean, heading towards Blok M, South Jakarta. The accident caused traffic to be hampered, with traffic jams extending around the area. Read the full news here.