The Bali Mandara Toll Road is testing a new
contactless, non-stop transport system. Drivers must currently stop at the toll
gate and tap their pre-paid travel card. Drivers must install a specialized app
called Cantas on their smartphones to participate in the trial. They will
submit their payment information and provide the app permission to monitor
their whereabouts.
The new system is known as a Multi-Lane Free Flow
System, and it employs GPS technology to make contactless payments. It is hoped
that the trial will be successful and that it will be integrated into the new
payment management system for the toll road.
The trial will run through the end of the year, after
which the program will be rolled out permanently after a review and some inevitable
modifications. The trial's organizers expect that it will make driving more
effective and even reduce operating costs.
The GPS detects the car's whereabouts as the driver
approaches the toll road gate. The car is then followed on a centralized system
utilizing map-matching until the driver passes through the toll road exit gate.
The software then computes the distance traveled and initiates the payment
transaction. The entire procedure will be automated.
Sanur is linked to Kuta and Nusa Dua by the Bali
Mandara Toll. The Ministry of Public Works is currently undertaking a massive
project to construct a 96-kilometer toll road between Gilimanuk and Mengwi.
This new toll road is expected to be completed in time for the G20 Summit in
November.
The project links three Bali regencies and is one of
the island's most significant infrastructural projects. The route, which runs
through Badung, Jembrana, and Tabanan, has provided hundreds of construction
jobs.
Other upgrades are being made to the Bali Mandara Toll
Road. According to Putu Gandi Ginantra, the operations, and maintenance
manager, the highway is being repainted, the toll gates are being repaired, and
technicians are installing solar panels along 1.5 kilometers of the route.
Some people argue that expanding transportation
infrastructure damages Bali's traditional beauty. Others applaud the upgrades
since they serve to increase transportation efficiency for both tourists and
locals. Traffic is diverted to toll roads with defined lanes for motorbikes, cars,
and heavy freight trucks, making streets across Bali less clogged and secure
for pedestrians and drivers.
Infrastructure development in Bali is being matched by
massive reforestation efforts. The mangrove ecosystems of southern Bali are the
subject of reforestation activities tied to toll road construction. So far, 750
mangrove trees have been planted, with many more to come. This is yet another
project that is being widely marketed in the run-up to the G20 Summit.
Mangrove replanting is essential for protecting
coastal populations from climate change. Bali is home to several coastline
protection projects. The most significant is a collaboration with the Japan
International Cooperation Agency, which has infused the second tranche of
financing this month to complete phase two of the Bali Beach Conservation
Project.
The obvious focus is on preserving the coastline near
Sanur Beach, Nusa Dua Beach, and Kuta Beach, which coincides with the Mandara
Toll Road improvements' reforestation element.
The Mandara Toll Road is frequently the first
experience of Bali that visitors have outside of Ngurah Rai Airport. The toll
road is used by many taxi drivers and airport shuttle agencies to bring guests
to Kuta Selatan, Uluwatu, and Jimbaran.
The toll road connects travelers to the Ngurah Rai
Bypass, which arcs around traffic-heavy Denpasar and links to highways that run
west to the pristine West Bali National Park.