Bekasi is a city in West Java

West Java

West Java , with a population of over 43 million, is the most populous and most densely populated province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, it is slightly smaller in area than densely populated Taiwan, but with nearly double the population...

, Indonesia

Indonesia

Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...

, located on the eastern border of Jakarta

Jakarta

Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...

 in the Jabodetabek metropolitan region. To the south is Bogor Regency

Bogor Regency

Bogor Regency Indonesian: Kabupaten Bogor is a regency of West Java, Indonesia, south of DKI Jakarta, and bordered by Tangerang Regency, the City of Depok and the City and Regency of Bekasi to the north, and fully encircling Bogor City. It is considered a bedroom community for Jakarta.The area...

, east is Bekasi Regency

Bekasi Regency

Bekasi Regency is a regency of West Java, Indonesia. The capital city is Cikarang. It is bordered by DKI Jakarta and Bekasi Municipality to the east, by Bogor Regency to the south, and by Karawang Regency to the east....

.

It has an area of 210.49 km² and 1,993,478 people in 2005, with a density of 9,471 people/km². The 2010 population was counted as 2,378,211, catapulting it to Indonesia's fourth largest city, and 2nd to only Bandung

Bandung

Bandung is the capital of West Java province in Indonesia, and the country's third largest city, and 2nd largest metropolitan area in Indonesia, with a population of 7.4 million in 2007. Located 768 metres above sea level, approximately 140 km southeast of Jakarta, Bandung has cooler...

 in West Java

West Java

West Java , with a population of over 43 million, is the most populous and most densely populated province of Indonesia. Located on the island of Java, it is slightly smaller in area than densely populated Taiwan, but with nearly double the population...

.

Substantial urban areas surround the city. It serves as a commuter city

Commuter town

A commuter town is an urban community that is primarily residential, from which most of the workforce commutes out to earn their livelihood. Many commuter towns act as suburbs of a nearby metropolis that workers travel to daily, and many suburbs are commuter towns...

 for Jakarta

Jakarta

Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...

, although it has notable trade, business and processing industries. These are primarily clustered in the area of Karawang

Karawang

Karawang is the capital of the Karawang Regency of West Java, Indonesia. It is located 32 miles east of Jakarta. Karawang has a population of 2,150,610 ....

.

Administration

Bekasi is divided into 12 subdistricts: West Bekasi, East Bekasi, South Bekasi, North Bekasi, Medan Satria, Rawalumbu, Bantar Gebang, Pondok Gede, Jatisampurna, Jatiasih, Pondok Melati and Mustika Jaya.

Commerce

In recent years, many satellite cities have developed along the Jatibening/Cikunir - Tambun toll highway. These include Harapan Indah

Harapan Indah

Harapan Indah is a city in Bekasi Regency, West Java, Indonesia. It is a rapidly developing city with its own supermarket, school, sports club and a number of office buildings with plans to develop a new shopping centre....

, Kemang Pratama, Taman Galaxy, and Grand Wisata.

There are several shopping centers in Bekasi. The largest is Mega Bekasi Hypermall (anchor tenant: Giant

Giant Hypermarket

Giant Hypermarket is a major supermarket and retailer chain in Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, and UAE. It is a subsidiary of Dairy Farm International Holdings .-History:...

), Other shopping centers include: Metropolitan Mall

Metropolitan Mall

Metropolitan Mall opened on 1993, is a shopping and entertainment center in Bekasi city, Indonesia. It has over 85,500 m² of floor space with 225 stores. It comprises two buildings, the Metropolitan Mall 1 and 2. Mall 2 opened in 2005. It houses a Matahari Department Store, Gramedia Bookstore, Ace...

. Grand Mall (anchor tenant: Hypermart), Blue Oasis City (anchor tenant: Carrefour

Carrefour

Carrefour S.A. is an international hypermarket chain headquartered in Levallois-Perret, France. It is one of the largest hypermarket chains in the world...

), Bekasi Trade Centre, Bekasi Cyber Park (anchor tenant: Hari Hari Swalayan), and Bekasi Square (anchor tenant: Carrefour

Carrefour

Carrefour S.A. is an international hypermarket chain headquartered in Levallois-Perret, France. It is one of the largest hypermarket chains in the world...

).

Transportation

There are two highway connections from the Jabodetabek urban area. The first is the Jakarta–Cikampek Toll Road, which has four exits in Bekasi. The other is the Jakarta Outer Ring Road, which provides access to Tangerang

Tangerang

Tangerang is a city in the Province of Banten, Indonesia. It is located about 25 km west of Jakarta. It is the third largest urban center in the Jabotabek region after Jakarta and Bekasi. It has an area of 164.54 km² and an official intercensal estimated population of 1,537,244 for 2005...

, Jakarta, and Bogor

Bogor

Bogor is a city on the island of Java in the West Java province of Indonesia. The city is located in the center of the Bogor Regency , 60 kilometers south of the Indonesian capital Jakarta...

. Owing to its location as a satellite city of Jakarta

Jakarta

Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Officially known as the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta, it is located on the northwest coast of Java, has an area of , and a population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre...

, heavy rush hour

Rush hour

A rush hour or peak hour is a part of the day during which traffic congestion on roads and crowding on public transport is at its highest. Normally, this happens twice a day—once in the morning and once in the evening, the times during when the most people commute...

 traffic jams have become common on the roads between Jakarta and Bekasi. Efforts have been made to overcome these problems, mainly by widening the roads between Sumber Arta market and Bekasi Cyber Park along the Kalimalang river. The most recent traffic project is the planned Becakayu toll road, which will be an alternate to the Jakarta-Cikampek Toll Road. Its route will be Bekasi Utara-Cawang-Kampung Melayu.

Industry

In addition to its numerous residential areas, there are several important industrial areas in Bekasi. These include the Jababeka and MM 2100 districts. Many large companies, such as Honda

Honda

is a Japanese public multinational corporation primarily known as a manufacturer of automobiles and motorcycles.Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, as well as the world's largest manufacturer of internal combustion engines measured by volume, producing more than...

, Converse and Samsung

Samsung

The Samsung Group is a South Korean multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea...

, have factories in Bekasi. Approximately 500,000 laborers live in Cikarang

Cikarang

Cikarang is the capital of Bekasi Regency, West Java in Indonesia. Jababeka is the biggest industrial estate in Southeast Asia. Property projects have also been built in Cikarang, such as Lippo Cikarang, Cikarang Baru, and Kota Delta Mas. The last one is the office complex of Bekasi.-Cikarang Dry...

, the capital city of the Bekasi regency.