Leaders Reveal More Plans For Bali’s Tourist Sea Toll Route And Ring Road

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The Regent of Badung, who is the leader in charge of Bali’s biggest tourism resorts, including Canggu, Seminyak, Uluwatu, Kuta, and Nusa Dua, has issued more information regarding the construction of the South Bali Ring Road and his plans to develop a sea toll route to help alleviate tourism traffic in the region.

Regent I Nyoman Giri Presta has confirmed that his plans to develop a transport route between I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport to Canggu will not damage the aesthetics of the area or the marine ecosystem.

This is because his plans are, in fact, for a boat lane rather than a road. His initial description of the project was widely believed to be a toll road and, failing that as an idea, a tram line, as he referred to the proposed transport route as a ‘sea toll road.’

The Regent has redefined his plans to confirm that he wants to develop a dedicated transportation lane between Bali Airport and Canggu for seafaring vehicles. 

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Regent Prasta spoke to reporters to confirm, “It’s not a toll road over the sea…it’s a sea toll road, so don’t be misunderstood. If we build a toll road over the sea, that means we build piles and build a road on top of them. It’s not like that.” He revealed he is already collaborating with third parties to bring this project to life. 

He added, “Moreover, my children surf there [at Canggu’s beaches]. In fact, several areas have become surf training places. Don’t [want to] damage marine life. This sea highway is outside the surfing area”, stressed Regent Prasta. 

@goboat.id Daily Departures between Canggu and Uluwatu. 35min instead of 2 hours in traffic #canggu #uluwatu #travellife #boat ♬ original sound – GoBoat.id

Regent Prasta has also spoken to the media about progress on the Badung South Ring Road, a project that many have felt has been moving too slowly.

The Badung South Ring Road (JLS) Project was initiated by Regent I Nyoman Giri Prasta and his Deputy I Ketut Suiasa, the project is set to be completed in 2025 though many fear that the construction work will not be finished in time. 

Regent Prasta has revealed that funding is to blame for the slow progress on the ring road and that further land acquisition is necessary to keep the project on track.

Speaking at a public meeting for the Badung South Ring Road on Monday, 29th July, Regent Prasta said, “We carry out this land acquisition so that there are no residents who are not willing to release their land. So far, it’s very good.”

He has just allocated a further IDR 550 billion to land accusation for the project. 

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He added, “Astungkara, later Mr. President and Mr. Vice President, through the Ministry of PUPR later so that they can carry out programs that synergize between the center and regions in Bali, especially those in South Badung…Planning when it’s done, this [finishing date] I’m not going to target, but focus on doing it gradually. Hopefully sooner is better.”

The Badung South Ring Road is set to be constructed in four stages with a total length of 34.7 kilometers.

Phase One will stretch from the Bali Mandara Toll Exit to Alas Arum Street and is set to span a length of about 13.2 kilometers. Phase Two will run from Alas Arum Road to Uluwatu Highway, which will be about 8.2 kilometers in length.

The Phase Three segment will be constructed from the Uluwatu Highway to Labuan Sait Road to Cemongkak Beach Road, which is set to be about 7.8 kilometers in length. The final phase, Phase Four, which connects Cemongkak Beach Road to the Green Jimbaran Area, will run for a length of about 5.5 kilometers.

The need for the Badung South Ring Road is becoming evermore apparent to the local community, ex-pats, and tourists visiting the resorts of Uluwatu, Ungasan, Kutuh, and further around the Bukit Peninsula.

With rapid tourism development bringing a huge increase of tourists to the area, the supporting infrastructure has had no time to catch up.

The road infrastructure is not able to support the growing number of vehicles on the roads, and there are a series of bottlenecks that cause significant traffic jams from the Jalan Bypass Road, through Jalan Labuan Sait and around the peninsula toward Ungasan and Kutuh.