A high-profile, multi-billion dollar rail project that was delayed for years has finally had its initial run with passengers. The train in this case is not located anywhere near Honolulu — but in the capital city of Indonesia.
Southeast Asia’s first high-speed train has hurtled down the tracks from Jakarta, thanks in part to financing that comes from China.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo was aboard the train’s initial run on Wednesday, reaching peak speeds topping 200 mph on the way to Bandung.
That’s the capital of West Java, a densely populated province that has nearly as many people as the entire country of South Korea.
Government officials estimate the cost of the project at more than $7 billion.
Three-quarters of the financing is covered by a loan from the China Development Bank.
It’s part of what China calls its “belt and road” initiative, a strategy of infrastructure development and financing around the Asia Pacific linking Chinese state-owned companies and banks with projects in emerging economies.
The train was built in China and the tracks were built by a consortium of Chinese and Indonesian companies.
Ownership is also mixed. Indonesian state-owned companies hold about 60% of the project, while Chinese companies own the rest.
The train is scheduled to open to the general public early next month, cutting the time of rail travel between the two cities from about three hours to roughly 40 minutes.
