The incredible £16bn underground train line built on one of world's most beautiful islands
The Bali Urban Subway is a rapid transit system being built in Indonesia. It will be 18.3 miles long and have a top speed of 62 miles per hour.
A beautiful island is planning to build a £16 billion underground train line.
The Bali Urban Subway is a rapid transit system being built in Indonesia. It will be 18.3 miles long and have a top speed of 62 miles per hour.
It is part of a government plan to ease traffic within the Denpasar metropolitan area in a project called the Bali Provincial Government Urban Railway.
Construction began in September of last year. Line One, connecting Ngurah Rai International Airport to Cemagi, and Line Two, connecting Ngurah Rai International Airport to Nusa Dua, are estimated to open in 2028 and 2031, respectively.
Line Three will be between Sentral Parkir Kuta and Sanur and Line Four will be between Renon and Ubud. Their construction and opening dates are yet to be announced.
It is estimated that over 1 million residents and tourists commute to the Denpasar metropolitan area daily. Over 5.2 million international tourists and 9.5 million domestic tourists visited Bali in 2023.
The first phase's investment (Lines One and Two) amounts to £8.4 billion. Phase 2's investment (Lines Three and Four) reached £7.8 billion, bringing the total investment to £16.2 billion.
Traditional land management regulations in Bali dictate that the construction of buildings or infrastructure cannot displace temples, sacred spaces, or most agricultural land and cannot be taller than a coconut tree.
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The Deputy for Facilities and Infrastructure at the National Planning Agency, Evran Maksum, explained why the train line was going to be underground despite being “three times the price.”
He said, “In Bali, there is a big problem. Buildings can’t be taller than coconut trees; they can’t go up. If you want to widen the road, there are lots of temples. So how do you do it? You have to go down, the only way.
“In Bali, it can take 2-3 hours to get to the airport at peak hour. The problem is that time is expensive, and even though Bali is small, it’s a problem. One solution is to use trains to speed up mobility in pockets.”
