PRESIDENT TO VISIT SURAMADU BRIDGE

Surabaya, East Java, May 21 (ANTARA) - President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono will take a close look at the construction site of Surabaya-Madura (Suramadu) bridge here on Friday.

The Head of State and First Lady Ani Yudhoyono would leave Jakarta for Surabaya, on Thursday, at 2 pm local time, according to information from the Palace press bureau, on Thursday.

They were expected to arrive in Surabaya, at 3.25 pm local time on Thursday.

President Yudhoyono will visit the Suramadu bridge project site on Friday morning, and will be welcomed by Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto and Surabaya Mayor Bambang Dwi Hartono.

He will be accompanied also by East Java Governor Soekarwo when inspecting the bridge project expected to be completed next June.

Yudhoyono later will join a Friday mass prayer at Sunan Ampel Mosque, Surabaya, and he is expected to deliver some remarks on the occasion.

After the Friday Prayer, the President will go to Juanda Airport to continue his visit to Denpasar, Bali.

The Suramadu bridge is expected to be Indonesia's longest bridge with a length of 5,438 meters. The bridge will connect Surabaya city with Madura Island.

The launching of the bridge construction, which costs Rp4.5 trillion, was inaugurated by the then president, Megawati Soekarnoputri, on August 20, 2003.