Tourism leaders in Bali are calling for changes to be made to the way in which I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport is managed.
Due to the high volumes of tourists that pass through the airport terminals every year, some leaders want to see the transportation hub managed in a more strategic way.
The Chairman of the Association of the Indonesian Tours and Travel Agencies (ASITA), Bali Putu Winastra, spoke with the Bali Province Ombudsman Office for the Republic of Indonesia to explain how he and ASITA feel that there are too many different authorities working at the airport without coordinating as effectively as possible.
Winastra noted, “Immigration, (authority of the Directorate General of) Immigration. Customs, (Directorate General of) Customs and Excise. Air Force Base, TNI AU. Airport Police, Polri. So many heads there, automatically there are many conflicts of interest.”
He used the example of Singapore Changi Airport, which is managed by a single central authority that oversees all elements of the airport operation.
Winastra feels that this single authority model would be impactful at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport to help avoid conflicting policies and bureaucracy and ultimately improve and make more efficient the experience for all passengers.
In response to Winastra’s suggestions on behalf of the Association of Indonesian Tours and Travel Agencies the Head of the Ombudsman Representative Office for Bali Province, Ni Wayan Sri Widhiyanti, approved of the changes in principle.
Widhiyanti said, “We’ll try to see because it’s more of a separate regulation. So far, we have handled complaints at the airport and also looked at what the complaints were related to and whose authority it was.”
Though improvements have been made at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport over the last few years, many feel that there is still a long way to go. The installation of the new autogate system has helped to massively reduce queue times at immigration, along with the rollout of the eVisa on Arrival.
@kyu00055 Finally hello bali 😍🛬 #bali #ngurahraiinternationalairport #citlink #holiday ♬ Landing di Bali – Faizal Maulana
However, recurrent feedback from tourists shows that baggage collection times need to be reduced and the security checks process more streamlined in order for I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport to be world-class. Political leaders in Bali, as well as industry stakeholders like Winastra, have also been speaking to the media about ways in which improvements can be made for tourists at Bali Airport.
The Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development (Menko Infra), Agus Harimurti Yudhoyono, told reporters that he and his teams are discussing ways in which Bali Airport’s capacity can be increased to 32 million passengers a year without expanding the terminal buildings. Minister Yudhoyono feels that implementing smart technologies can help scale I Gusti Ngurah Rai’s capacity quickly.
He told reporters, “Bali has been the backbone of national tourism and the creative economy. Therefore, we must ensure that the airport capacity is getting better. Currently, Ngurah Rai Airport serves around 23-25 million passengers per year, and with proper optimization, its capacity can increase to 32 million passengers per year.”
He added that this could be achieved through digitalization, the use of AI, and the implementation of data-driven policymaking. With this approach, Minister Yudhoyono feels that operational efficiency can be improved without having to build new terminals.
The Minister noted, “We hope that Ngurah Rai Airport can become a Hub. Not only for around Bali but also for various super-priority tourism destinations. What we heard earlier is that the Ministry of Tourism also continues to develop super-priority tourism destinations that we connect with Bali.”
He also addresses a series of airport-related issues that need to be resolved for tourists, including traffic congestion close to the airport, as well as the lack of public transportation connections to resorts around the island.
Minister Yudhoyono has suggested that changes be made to flight schedules to allow for 24-hour arrivals and departures, as well as harnessing the potential of ‘intermodal transportation systems’ such as the new water taxi idea that is due to come into effect by the end of Q1 2025.
He concluded “If we are serious and earnest like this, the coordination is good, we can pursue the increase in the ranking. I am sure that with the good and professional management that has been carried out by InJourney and other friends, and with all of us trying to ensure that it is always better from time to time, there will be an increase.”
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Steve bm
Tuesday 28th of January 2025
The 100 Mafia loitering and hassle everyone outside a 30 year problem....get rid of them
Exp
Tuesday 28th of January 2025
"They want to use AI to scale I Gusti Ngurah Rai’s capacity quickly."
That will work fine until the passengers approach the taxi mafia outside who are not familiar with AI or I for that matter.
Adrian
Monday 27th of January 2025
A solution worth investigating is to divest majority ownership of the airports (an thus management) to companies that run world-class airports, such as Changi.