Youtefa Bridge: New Icon of Papua's Jayapura

RRI.CO.ID, Jayapura – For the past several years, Jayapura, the capital of Indonesia’s Papua Province, has had a new landmark. More than just a structure, the bridge has also made it easier for residents to travel from one part of the city to another.

Youtefa Bridge is a steel tied-arch bridge spanning Youtefa Bay. The 732-meter-long bridge, painted entirely red, connects Muara Tami and Jayapura Selatan districts.

The bridge stands over a narrow body of water connecting Youtefa Bay with the Pacific Ocean. From the bridge, visitors can catch glimpses of the city of Jayapura.

The bridge has reduced travel time between central Jayapura and Skouw, where an Indonesian border post is located. The Skouw Cross-Border Post sits along Indonesia’s border with Papua New Guinea.

Youtefa Bridge, formerly known as Holtekamp Bridge, was first constructed in 2015. Indonesian state-owned construction companies, including Hutama Karya, Nindya Karya, and Pembangunan Perumahan (PP), built the bridge with support from the Ministry of Public Works and Housing.

The bridge’s main spans were constructed at the shipyard of state-owned shipbuilding company PAL Indonesia in Surabaya, East Java. The spans were then transported approximately 3,200 kilometers by sea to Jayapura.

Then-Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo inaugurated the bridge on October 28, 2019. The Indonesian World Records Museum (MURI) recognized two records for the project: the longest-distance delivery of a complete steel-frame bridge and the longest intact steel-frame bridge installation.