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Jakarta. Experts have criticized the government over a 103-meter span of road that collapsed suddenly near Jakarta’s Tanjung Priok port early on Thursday, disrupting traffic in and out of the port but causing no casualties.

While the authorities have blamed erosion for the collapse, which saw a section of two entire lanes of Jalan RE Martadinata disappear underwater, an urban planner and city councilor believe weak monitoring contributed to the incident, which may cost the state up to Rp 6 billion ($666,000).

Comr. Susatyo Purnomo Condro, chief of detectives at the North Jakarta Police said the surface of the eight kilometer road had been undergoing repairs since April 1, but the contractor, Indra Prima, was yet to complete the project.

He said the 20-year-old road, which falls under the responsibility of the central government, ran alongside a canal and was often flooded by tidal surges.

Comr. Irvan Prawiraputra, chief of North Jakarta’s traffic unit, said police had initially closed all lanes at the collapsed part of the road, but reopened the unaffected lanes for about an hour before closing it altogether again because of safety concerns.

The deputy minister of public works, Hermanto Dardak, told the Jakarta Globe that erosion was to blame and that natural water abrasion had weakened the road’s foundations.

He said the ministry would today start installing concrete piles to support the remaining portion of road where the collapse took place. He estimated the repair bill would be about Rp 6 billion.

Djoko Murjanto, director general of Bina Marga, which oversees roads at the ministry, said a study would be undertaken to find the most appropriate technology and measures to repair the damaged section and strengthen the entire length of the road.

“The road has been fine for more than 20 years, so we didn’t really monitor the structure,” he said, adding that the ongoing repairs had only been surface work to fix problems such as potholes.

Meanwhile, Insp. Gen. Timur Pradopo, chief of the Jakarta Police, said during a visit to the site that a joint team with the Public Works Ministry would investigate the cause of the collapse.

Susatyo said the police had so far questioned four people — two project supervisors from the Public Works Ministry, an employee of Indra Prima and the motorcycle rider who discovered the collapse.

He said police were focusing on the ongoing repairs as well as technical information about the road’s construction. Yayat Supriyatna, an urban planning expert from Trisakti University, blamed weak monitoring for the incident.

“RE Martadinata is a strategic road used by many people. Why did the government only repair the surface without checking the foundations as well?” he said.

Yayat said that while the erosion had been natural, proper monitoring would have prevented the collapse.

Ellen Tangkudung, from the Indonesian Transportation Society (MTI), said the heavy traffic that used the road, including of container trucks, should be considered in the planning.

City councilor Muhammad Sanusi urged the central government to repair the road immediately because it provided primary access to and from the port.

He said the ministry should have known that North Jakarta was exposed to regular tidal floods and better monitored the road’s foundations.

Traffic to and from Tanjung Priok is being diverted to avoid the collapsed section of the road, with a detour available through Sunter and Jalan Baru Pengadilan.