Trans-Java Toll Road

During the Dutch colonial era, the colonial government ordered Governor-General Herman Willem Daendels to build a road connecting the two major ports of Anyer, part of modern-day Banten and Panarukan in modern-day Situbondo. Following the Indonesian independence. The road becomes the main route connecting the major cities of Jakarta, Semarang, and Surabaya, albeit with several deviations, instead of going through the old Preanger cities of Bogor, Cianjur, Bandung, Sumedang, before rejoining the coast in Cirebon, the new road instead follows the northern Java coast and is more commonly known as Pantura (Jalur Pantai Utara, literally meaning North Coast Road). Over the years, the highway became increasingly congested, the volume of cars using it increases each year, especially during Eid or Christmas seasons. The congestion is also caused by the fact that the highway is open-access, meaning that everyone, including pedestrians could use this road, not just intercity traffic. Frequent roadworks along the routes also hampers traffic. In order to combat congestion, President Suharto started commissioning toll roads along the corridor in the 1980s, following the construction of Indonesia's first toll road, the Jakarta-Bogor-Ciawi (Jagorawi) Toll Road. Soeharto also created a state-owned enterprise PT. Jasa Marga to regulate and operate toll roads in Indonesia. During this era, the highway is completed in sections. The first section to be fully completed is the section between Tangerang and Jakarta, this section was completed in 1984. Two years later, the section between Surabaya and Gempol (near Pasuruan. Semarang Outer Ring Road was the next section to be fully opened (after having sections of it partially opened starting from 1983), opened in 1988. The next major section to be fully operational is the Jakarta-Cikampek section, spanning 72 km, this highway would become one of the most important and most used highway in Indonesia, as it is the fastest link between Jakarta and cities in eastern West Java, Central Java, and East Java. The Tangerang-Merak section is next to be completed, also spanning 72 km, this section was opened in 1992, fully connecting the Port of Merak with Jakarta, although links further east and south is not yet available through toll roads. Following the completion of the Tangerang-Merak section, construction along this network stagnated. In 1995, Soeharto proposed to accelerate the construction of several toll roads, including several along this network. But this instruction is quickly hampered by the 1997 Asian financial crisis, leading to a Presidential Instruction calling off a large number of constructions along the country. During this era, only two sections of the toll road is completed, namely parts of the Jakarta Outer Ring Road completed in 1995 and the Palimanan-Kanci section (bypassing Cirebon). Following Reformasi, constructions of toll roads continue to stagnate, remarkably, no toll road in this corridor is completed during the first few years of Reformasi. During the presidency of Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono formed Badan Pengurus Jalan Tol (lit. Highway Operator Board). Following the formation of this board, highway construction, especially in this corridor continued, starting with the completion of several sections of the Jakarta Outer Ring Road and the 33 km Kanci-Pejagan section creating the first highway link between West Java and Central Java, several sections along the Surabaya-Mojokerto section was also completed during this period. as it finally connects Jakarta and Cirebon and onwards to Central and East Java, significantly cutting travel time between the regions, as it allows travellers to bypass one of the busiest sections between the region along the West Java coast. Following the opening of the Cikampek-Palimanan section, Widodo instructed involved parties, particularly the Ministry of Public Works to accelerate the completion of the remaining sections in both Central Java and East Java. The remaining sections then simultaneously started construction in 2016, along with the finishing of partially completed sections and the construction of a new road on the Porong-Gempol section to replace the one washed out by the Lapindo floods. After years of construction, this toll road network was finally completed and unveiled by President Joko Widodo on 20 December 2018, with the unveiling taking place on two locations, in Mojokerto and the Kalikuto Bridge, Batang (which became the icon for the new highway). Officially connecting Merak and Surabaya. While the section connecting Surabaya and Probolinggo was completed and unveiled the next year. As of 2023, the only uncompleted portions of the Trans-Java Toll Road is the section between Probolinggo and Banyuwangi. The 170 km section, which would connect both Java coast, is currently under construction at a slow pace due to several problems, mainly arising from land ownership. == Maps ==