JAKARTA - The Ministry of Public Works (PU) has started to build eight permanent bridges on the road sections affected by disasters in Aceh, West Sumatra and North Sumatra provinces. This is done as part of accelerating the recovery of inter-regional connectivity.
Minister PU Dody Hanggodo said that delaying the construction of a permanent building would actually prolong the problem on the ground. According to him, the restriction on vehicle tonnage is difficult to implement strictly in areas that are highly dependent on the distribution of goods.
"If it is not accelerated, the restriction of heavy vehicles will continue to cause problems in the field, because the community also needs logistics," said Dody, quoted from a written statement, Thursday, January 22.
In January 2026, the PU Ministry began working on eight permanent bridges in a number of Aceh districts, including the Krueng Meureudu Bridge (Pidie); Krueng Tingkeum and Ulee Langa (Aceh Besar); Teupin Mane (North Aceh); Krueng Beutong (Nagan Raya); Pelang (South Aceh); Mengkudu I (Aceh Besar); and Pante Dona (West Aceh).
In addition to bridges, the government is also targeting landslide-prone points that have been the backbone of inter-regional connectivity. At least 30 landslide points will be handled in strategic sections, such as Bireuen-Bener Meriah, Takengon-Uwaq to Blangkejereng-Kutacane and Nagan Raya.
The construction is not merely replacing an emergency structure. The PU Ministry is designing a permanent bridge with disaster resilience standards so that it will not collapse again when extreme weather recurs.
"One permanent bridge takes about eight to nine months. This is not a temporary building, but a long-term infrastructure that must be safe and sustainable," he said.
For some traffic-dense locations such as the Krueng Tingkeum Bridge, the government implements a dual scheme: the temporary bridge remains functional while the permanent construction is underway. Thus, vehicle traffic is expected not to be completely jammed.
Overall, the PU Ministry targets the handling of 20 permanent bridges and 68 landslide points in Aceh, which are carried out in stages until June 2026. The initial focus is directed at national bridges so that there are no isolated areas.
"President Prabowo's instructions are clear, there must be no districts or cities that are cut off from connectivity. Therefore, all of our national bridges are accelerating their handling so that logistics and people's mobility continue to run," he added.
After the emergency response period, the government ensured that work did not stop. The rehabilitation and reconstruction phase of basic infrastructure will continue with cross-sectoral coordination, to recover Aceh from the impact of the disaster while strengthening the infrastructure foundation in the future.
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