Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo has appointed an acting director and commissioner for the city-owned subway operator Mt Mass Rapid Transit Jakarta (PT MRTJ).

The newly-appointed acting director is Eddi Santosa, an expert in financial and corporate restructuring, while the former city assistant secretary for development, Nurfakih Wirawan, has been appointed acting commissioner.

The two executives will sit for PR MRTJ for the next four months until a fixed board of directors is formed.

Governor Fauzi Bowo signed the ruling in his office, witnessed by notary Sutjipto, JBIC representative M. Otawa, JICA Expert representative S. Utsubo and director of city-owned market operator PD Pasar Jaya Uthand H. Sitorus.

Fauzi said the city administration involved PD Pasar Jaya as partner in the establishment of the company due to its healthy cash flow.

"Besides, the MRT project will be connected with several traditional markets, such as Blok M, Blok A, Mede Fatmawati, Benhil and Blora. I hope it will make markets under PD Pasar Jaya's management become more modern," he said.

He said the appointed executives would determine Jakarta's public transportation for the next 50 years since the MRT was projected to serve the public in the long term.

"I'm sure MRT will integrate Jakarta's transportation modes."

The new director of PT MRTJ, Eddi Santosa, said he would set up an organizational structure and recruitment system and prepare the second phase of loan agreements in the next four months.

"The second phase of loan agreements between the government and the city administration will take place in June or July 2009," he said.

Sutjipto said both appointed executives would recruit employees to fill vacant posts at the company, using a professional recruitment agency.

"The directors selected from the recruitment process will serve for four years while the commissioner will serve three years," he said.

The basic capital to finance MRT is Rp 200 billion (US$21.5 million), which was divided in 200,000 shares or Rp 1 million for each share. The working capital deposited was 25 percent or 50,000 stocks or worth Rp 50 billion.

Of the Rp 50 billion, 49,500 shares or Rp 49.5 billion are owned by the city administration and 500 shares or Rp 500 million are owned by PD Pasar Jaya.

Fauzi said he hoped his administration could finish the land acquisition in 2009 and continue the construction process in 2010.

"We hope construction can finish in 2012 and the MRT can start operating by 2014," he said.

Fauzi said this year, the administration would acquire land around Lebak Bulus to build a final station and MRT's depot.

Eddi, who was the working team coordinator during MRTJ's formation, said land acquisition would be conducted by the city public works agency and the city transportation agency. The agencies will have Rp 40 billion of the total Rp 160 billion budget to acquire the land this year, he added.

Governor Fauzi Bowo said Tuesday the capital would start a Rp 40 trillion (US$4.2 billion) project constructing elevated roads across all municipalities in Jakarta next year. Six toll roads are included in the project.

"We must understand that horizontal road expansion is no longer a favorable solution in easing traffic jams," he said at City Hall.

"Therefore, we have no other choice except to build more elevated roads."

He said elevated toll roads were also part of a plan to generate revenue for the city.

"We could use more revenue from toll roads to fund the development of other roads, as well as the development of an MRT, the monorail and the busway," said Fauzi.

The MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) is a rail system Jakarta has been planning since 1984. Plans to begin construction this year have again been delayed until 2010.

He said, however, more research was required to measure the impacts of the construction, such as congestion.

"Both the central government and the city administration agree road expansion on ground level will not solve transportation issues in the city," he said.

"But we can think of another way to solve traffic problems. We have to carefully decide the locations of the toll road exits and entrances in the design."

Wrong locations of toll road exits and entrances, Fauzi said, would create worse traffic jams.

He also said the money needed to fund the elevated roads project would come from the administration, the capital market, the money market and loan syndicates.

Fauzi said the city would start the toll road construction in North Jakarta because MRT construction was planned for the same time in the south.

The Rp 8.3 trillion ($913 million) MRT project will stretch 14.3 kilometers from Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta, to Dukuh Atas, Central Jakarta and is expected to be finished in 2014.

In addition, Fauzi said the design would also calculate increased air pollution resulting from road expansions that consequently encourage more people to use vehicles.

The six planned toll roads