Indonesia plans to build the longest bridge in the world between Sumatra and Java

Jakarta - Indonesia is considering the construction of a suspended bridge over 30 kilometers long, which would connect the islands of Java and Sumatra. The bridge intended for road and rail transport is expected to cost around ten billion dollars (195.6 billion CZK) and, if completed, will become the longest bridge in the world. This was reported by Heka Hertanto, a spokesman for PT. Artha Graha, the largest company in the consortium interested in building the bridge.
Governments from provinces on both sides of the Sunda Strait and a group of local companies have already agreed to prepare a feasibility study for the construction. If the project gets the green light, the consortium plans to start building the bridge in 2012.
The project is very ambitious, as the bridge will need to withstand strong earthquakes and tsunamis. The strait over which the bridge will span is one of the most seismically active areas in the world.
More than half of Indonesia's 220 million inhabitants live on Java and Sumatra, and the country's largest cities are located here. Currently, around 350,000 people and 25,000 vehicles are ferried across the strait daily. Hertanto anticipates that the flow of people and cars will soon exceed the capacity of the Merak ports in Java and Bakauheni in Sumatra. "The bridge over the strait is the only option to solve this problem for the future," AP quoted Hertanto.