The central government has agreed to revise regulations to strengthen legal protection and so the administration has scheduled the LRT groundbreaking for June, Ahok said on Wednesday, citing the route designed to service the Asian Games as a priority.

“President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo has agreed to the prompt revision of those regulations which have become our legal basis in the construction of the LRT. We will be able to kick start the construction soon,” Ahok said, adding that Jakartans could expect to see the initial construction work on the route connecting Asian Games venues, such as the Velodrome Sports complex in Rawamangun, East Jakarta, the Britama basketball court at Kelapa Gading Sports Mall in North Jakarta and the athletes village in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta begin in September.

He explained that Jokowi had agreed to revise Article 8 of Presidential Regulation No. 99/2015 on Acceleration of Railway Operation in Jakarta, as well as Government Regulation No. 79/2015 on Implementation of Construction Services.

With the revision, a governor will also be able to appoint both state and or city-owned companies to carry out the construction, Ahok added.

Hence, he said, the administration had appointed state-owned developer Adhi Karya to work with city-owned PT Jakarta Propertindo (Jakpro), which is responsible for the construction of the city’s LRT.

Previously, the administration had doubted a prompt start to construction as the regulations had been deemed to not provide certainty for the administration nor Jakpro, in the selection of partners.

On Tuesday, the city administration met with the central government and the Palembang administration, as Palembang in South Sumatra will also host the 2018 Asian Games, to discuss various transportation projects to reduce traffic congestion in both cities throughout the duration of the event.

After the meeting, Jokowi informed reporters that he had demanded that the governors begin the construction of LRT in both regions so that the transportation would be operational before the start of the 2018 Asian Games on Aug. 18, 2018.

“This is the fifth [Cabinet] meeting to discuss LRT. I don’t want to see another [Cabinet] meeting because all [matters hindering construction] should have been completed this afternoon,” he said, citing data that suggests congestion had caused the country to suffer losses of around Rp 28 trillion (US$1.2 billion).

The President further said that, in a bid to ease mobility, he expected the LRT lines to reach the airport in both regions.

Cabinet Secretary Pramono Anung said that the government expected the Jakarta LRT project to be finished by April or June 2018. Therefore, people from satellite cities, such as Tangerang in Banten and Bekasi in West Java, would be able to travel to the capital to witness the games in a speedy fashion.

The Jakarta administration are expected to build 123.7 kilometers of intra-city LRT lines, which will be integrated with 142 kilometers of LRT lines to be built by the Transportation Ministry from the capital to other regions in West Java, like Karawang, Walini and Tegalluar.

However, in the initial phase, the administration plan to set 83 kilometers of LRT lines, serving nine corridors.

The routes that have been named as a priority will connect Asian Games venues, such as the Velodrome Sports complex in Rawamangun, East Jakarta, the Britama basketball court at Kelapa Gading Sports Mall in North Jakarta and the athletes village in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta.

The capital will also benefit from a “Greater Jakarta LRT” built by PT Adhi Karya. The first route is under construction and will run between Cibubur/Bekasi Timur in West Java to Cawang in East Jakarta, and will expand to Dukuh Atas in Central Jakarta. The first phase is slated for completion in December 2017.

Meanwhile, the capital’s mass rapid transit (MRT) from Lebak Bulus in South Jakarta to Hotel Indonesia in Central Jakarta is targeted for completion in August 2018.