Commission VI Of The House Of Representatives Supports The Acceleration Of Merak Port Development

JAKARTA - Commission VI of the DPR RI is committed to providing full support for the development of Merak Port infrastructure, considering the vital role of this port as a national connectivity node that connects Java and Sumatra.

Member of Commission VI of the House of Representatives, Nasim Khan, said that this visit was aimed at directly observing the conditions and plans for port development as a strategic step in improving public transportation services that were safer, more comfortable and efficient.

"Commission VI is here not only to carry out its supervisory function, but also to encourage the improvement of the quality of public services by SOEs. ASDP has a strategic role in maintaining national logistics mobility and smoothness, and we fully support its development," said Nasim in an official statement, Friday, July 18.

Meanwhile, Acting Asdep for Logistics Services at the Ministry of SOEs, Endra Gunawan, highlighted the operational challenges of Merak Port which now accommodates more than 20 million passengers and 5.2 million vehicles per year.

This volume is equivalent to 56 percent of the total ASDP national traffic, and jumped sharply during peak seasons such as Eid and Christmas-New Year.

"Even though the port capacity is not yet ideal for such a large burden," said Endra.

ASDP President Director Heru Widodo said the spike in traffic when the homecoming flow could reach more than 40,000 vehicles per day, and ironically around 30 percent of them did not have tickets when they arrived at the port.

"This triggers long queues that not only have an impact on port services, but also on traffic and order in the surrounding area," he explained.

Heru said ASDP had also prepared a plan to develop the port area as part of the Merak's Integrated National Strategic Project (PSN) Bakauheni, which is listed in the Permenko Perekonomian No. 12 of 2024.

This plan includes the construction of a bufferzone at KM 97, the relocation of Merak Train Station, the construction of a flyover, and a dock with a breakwater system. However, the implementation is still experiencing obstacles due to limited cross-sector coordination.

"Therefore, we ask for support from Commission VI of the DPR RI so that the process of implementing this PSN can be accelerated considering that this project involves many ministries and technical institutions," said Heru.

Heru emphasized that the development of Merak Port is not only about infrastructure, but also about the transformation of integrated and sustainable public services.