BSD City. Singapore's Trade Minister Gan Kim Yong on Tuesday visited the transit-oriented development, commonly shortened as TOD, project in BSD City.

This project was built in a partnership between real estate developer Sinar Mas Land and Mitbana, a consortium encompassing Japanese trading company Mitsubishi Corporation and Singaporean urban planner Surbana Jurong.

Singaporean ambassador to Indonesia Anil Kumar Nayar accompanied Gan Kim Yong in his visit to BSD City. The minister also brought along delegates from the Singaporean Trade Ministry, the Singapore Economic Development Board, Enterprise Singapore, and Singapore Business Federation.

Located in the Intermoda BSD City, the TOD project is the first interconnected multimodal transport complex in Greater Jakarta. The project also marks Mitbana’s first development in Indonesia.

The Intermoda TOD will create a new downtown that offers various options for public transportation, including buses, trains, park-and-ride facilities. This way, people can travel from BSD city to downtown Jakarta congestion-free.

Covering an area of 6 hectares, the Intermoda TOD has a total development value of approximately S$200 million. This project is part of Mitbana and Sinar Mas Land’s larger goal to transform over 100 hectares in BSD City into TODs comprising apartments, commercial properties, lifestyle amenities, and public transportation.

According to Sinar Mas Land group chief executive officer Michael Widjaja, the project proves Singapore and Indonesia’s close ties.

“Our partnership with Mitbana gives us an opportunity to understand Singapore’s urban planning standards and practices. [The partnership allows us] to explore the ways we can introduce smart, sustainable, and holistic urban solutions to elevate communities and businesses in Indonesia,” Michael said in a recent press statement.

The strategic partnership between Mitbana and Sinar Mas Land is a testament to Indonesia’s robust economic ties with Singapore and Japan, according to Pang Yee Ean, the board member and acting chief executive officer at Mitbana.

“Once this development is complete, this project will become a benchmark in urban planning from Japan and Singapore. It will also embrace new technologies for future-ready development,” Pang Yee Ean said.

Mitbana and Sinar Mas Land will also introduce Singaporean smart mobility firm SWAT’s technology. SWAT’s smart mobility solution will improve the bus services in BSD City and surrounding cities, boost public transport ridership, and enhance connectivity to downtown Jakarta. 

This solution will use intelligent algorithms to provide demand-responsive services to seamlessly connect commuters switching from rail to bus network. Enterprise Singapore will be facilitating this partnership with SWAT.

According to Joseph Ueda, the managing director and chief operating officer at Mitbana, the consortium will leverage Mitsubishi Corporation’s experience in curating urban planning and Surbana Jurong’s technical expertise in this project. 

“Together with Sinar Mas Land, we aim to create a leading smart and sustainable development in BSD city, while also fostering an inclusive social community,” Joseph Ueda said.