South Tangerang (Indonesian: Tangerang Selatan, Sundanese: ᮓᮚᮩᮂ ᮒᮍᮨᮛᮀ ᮊᮤᮓᮥᮜ᮪, romanized: Dayeuh Tangerang Kidul) abbreviated as Tangsel, is a city in the province of Banten, Indonesia. Located 30 km (19 mi) on the southwestern border of Jakarta, the city forms part of the Greater Jakarta metropolitan area. It was administratively separated from Tangerang Regency on 26 November 2008. According to the 2020 Census, the city population was 1,354,350 inhabitants, while the official estimate as of mid-2024 was 1,429,629 - comprising 712,409 males and 717,120 females. The total area is 164.86 km2 (63.65 sq mi). It is the second-largest city in Banten (after Tangerang immediately to its north) in terms of population, and has grown rapidly, not only as Jakarta's satellite city, but also as the development of business districts and commerce due to presence of large-scale planned town by private developers.
South Tangerang is home to some planned towns built by private developers, the notable ones are Alam Sutera (in North Serpong), BSD City (in Serpong and Setu), and Bintaro Jaya (in Pondok Aren and Ciputat), complete with facilities such as business centers, hospitals, shopping malls, and international schools such as British School Jakarta, Global Jaya School, German School Jakarta (Deutsche Schule Jakarta), and a Monash University campus in BSD, among other prominent private universities. In the same city, there is another major mixed‑use development called SouthCity, a 57‑hectare superblock in the Pondok Cabe area that includes residential neighbourhoods, commercial spaces, and planned lifestyle facilities, as well as a joint investment of over Rp 1 trillion to build a regional shopping mall within the superblock, reflecting its role in South Tangerang's evolving urban landscape. Currently, the average land price in South Tangerang is the most expensive among Jakarta's satellite cities.
Contents
History
The municipality of South Tangerang is an autonomous city established on 26 November 2008, based on Banten province's constitution. This establishment was a division out of the Tangerang Regency, to support the better development of government service, construction project, community service, and also to utilize the natural potential so that a greater public welfare could be achieved.
Situ Gintung flood
Situ Gintung reservoir was built by the Dutch colonial authorities in 1933. It is located at the kelurahan of Cirendeu in East Ciputat District. It was surrounded by a dam up to 16 metres (52 ft) high, which failed on 27 March 2009 with the resulting floods killing at least 93 people.
Demographics
Languages
The dominant languages used in South Tangerang are Betawi and Tangerang Sundanese languages. Betawi is spoken in almost all areas of South Tangerang, except in the western part along the Cisadane River. Meanwhile, Sundanese is spoken in the west along the Cisadane River, which is predominantly used in villages on the banks of the river, especially in North Serpong. In several communities located in the western part there are also several areas undergoing a language shift, which are mostly found in Serpong, Setu, and a small number of villages in the western part of Pondok Aren. In fact, there is a village in Setu district namely the Keranggan Ecotourism and Sundanese Culture Village (Kampung Ekowisata dan Budaya Sunda Keranggan), where almost all the people used to speak Sundanese (currently it is only spoken predominantly in 2 RT).
Administrative districts
The municipality of South Tangerang is divided into seven districts (kecamatan), tabulated below with their areas and population totals from the 2010 Census and 2020 Census, together with the official estimates as of mid-2024. The centre of South Tangerang is the Ciputat district; the western districts of the city (Setu, Serpong and Serpong Utara) are much less densely populated than the eastern districts (Pamulang, Ciputat, Ciputat Timur and Pondok Aren). The table also includes the number of administrative villages (totaling 54 urban kelurahan) in each district, and its postal codes.
Government
Mayor
The Mayor of South Tangerang is the highest-ranking official within the South Tangerang City government. He reports to the Governor of Banten. The current mayor or regional head of South Tangerang City is Benyamin Davnie, with Pilar Saga Ichsan as vice mayor. They took office on 26 April 2021. The mayors have been:
Climate
South Tangerang has a tropical rainforest climate (Köppen: Af) and situated in the alluvial lowland with moderate rainfall from May to September and heavy rainfall from October to April.
Transportation
The city is served mainly by land transportation. Buses, minibuses and taxis are the main methods of transportation available. The public transportation mostly goes to Jakarta since many of the residents of South Tangerang commute to Jakarta on a daily basis. There are feeder buses for TransJakarta. The feeder buses goes from Bumi Serpong Damai and Bintaro Jaya to downtown Jakarta in Senayan.
Main road and highway in the city are:
Main road:
Jl. Raya Serpong
Jl. Pahlawan Seribu, BSD City
Jl. Kapten Soebianto Djojohadjikusumo, BSD City
Jl. Pelayangan, BSD City
Jl. Ir. H. Juanda, Ciputat
Jl. Ciater Raya
Jl. Alam Sutera Boulevard
Jl. Boulevard Bintaro Jaya
Highway:
Jakarta-Serpong Toll Road (connecting Serpong and South Jakarta/JORR 1)
Serpong-Cinere Toll Road (connecting Serpong and Cinere in Depok)
Kunciran-Serpong Toll Road (connecting Kunciran in Tangerang City/Soekarno Hatta Airport and Serpong)
Serpong-Balaraja Toll Road (in progress for section 1A) (connecting Serpong and Balaraja in Tangerang Regency)
The city is also served by commuter rail service KRL Commuterline for those commuters who work in Jakarta. There are five stations located in South Tangerang, namely Jurangmangu, Pondok Ranji, Rawa Buntu, Serpong and Sudimara. All stations serves the Tanah Abang – Rangkasbitung Line.
MRT Jakarta (Future Planned)
In the future, South Tangerang City is planned to be part of the Jakarta MRT network, specifically along the route connecting Lebak Bulus to Pamulang. This planned MRT Jakarta Line will traverse key areas, starting at the Jakarta–Banten border and passing through notable landmarks such as Universitas Muhammadiyah Jakarta, Situ Gintung, UIN Syarif Hidayatullah, Pasar Ciputat, Ciputat Martadinata, Pamulang Toll Gate, Gaplek Flyover Pondok Cabe, and ending at Pondok Cabe Terminal.
The route will primarily follow major roads, including Ir. H. Juanda Road, Dewi Sartika Road in Ciputat, R.E. Martadinata Road in Ciputat, and Terminal Pondok Cabe Road.
Planned MRT Jakarta Stations on the Lebak Bulus–Pamulang Line
The proposed stations along this line are as follows:
Ciputat Timur
UIN
Ciputat
Ciputat Martadinata
Ciputat Cipayung
Polsek Pamulang
Pondok Cabe
This line aims to enhance connectivity across South Tangerang, facilitating access to educational institutions, marketplaces, residential areas, and transportation hubs.
In the long term, the Jakarta MRT North-South Line is also planned to extend from Pondok Cabe in South Tangerang, Banten, to Ancol Marina in North Jakarta, creating a seamless transit connection between the southern and northern regions of Greater Jakarta.
There are two toll roads servicing the city, namely Jakarta–Serpong Toll Road and Jakarta–Tangerang Toll Road. There are also several toll roads currently under planning. The plans are for a Serpong-Balaraja Toll Road which will continue the Jakarta-Serpong toll road, and Jakarta Outer Ring Road 2 which will be connecting the city to Soekarno–Hatta International Airport in the near future. Kunciran-Serpong Toll Road and Serpong-Cinere Toll Road are the latest new infrastructure built in the city.
Pondok Cabe Airport – which is used for military and civilian services – is the only airport located within the city boundaries. It is owned by PT Pertamina, the national oil company. The airport is also used for the maintenance base for Pelita Air Service, also owned by PT Pertamina.
Cycle rickshaws (becak) are still available in some areas in the city. Becak is the only method of transportation currently forbidden to operate in Jakarta as its slow speed has allegedly led to congestion in the traffic of Jakarta. However, since South Tangerang is located on the outskirts of Jakarta (instead of the city proper), it is allowed in the city.
Shopping
South Tangerang offers some shopping center in the area, such as:
Living World Alam Sutera
Bintaro Xchange Mall
Plaza Bintaro Jaya
BSD Plaza
TerasKota Entertainment Center BSD
Transpark Mall Bintaro
LOTTE Mall Bintaro
ITC BSD
Mall WTC Matahari Serpong
BSD Junction
Paradise Walk Serpong
Transmart Mall Bintaro
Serpong Plaza (former shopping centre, opened in 2003 and vacant since 2012)
Education
Education in South Tangerang consists of the standard Elementary through High School facilities found in most of Indonesia, kindergartens are operated privately. Below are several notable schools in South Tangerang:
International Schools
Jakarta Japanese School (Bintaro Jaya)
Global Jaya School (Bintaro Jaya)
German School Jakarta (BSD City)
Sinarmas World Academy (BSD City)
British School Jakarta (Bintaro Jaya)
BINUS Serpong, Cambridge International School (BSD City)
Mutiara Harapan Islamic School
Khalifa IMS Bintaro, Cambridge International School
Mentari Intercultural School Bintaro
Insan Cendekia Madani School
Private Schools
SMK Musik Yayasan Musik Jakarta
Santa Ursula BSD
Santa Laurensia School (Alam Sutera)
BPK Penabur Bintaro Jaya
SMA Plus Pembangunan Jaya
SMA Efata Serpong
SMA Candle Tree
SMA Islam Cikal Harapan BSD
SMA Islam Sinar Cendekia
SMA Stella Maris BSD
SMA Islam Al Azhar BSD
Saint John Catholic School BSD
Sekolah Athalia Villa Melati Mas
Kharisma Bangsa School
Sekolah Harapan Bangsa, Modernhill Pondok Cabe
Ora Et Labora BSD
TK SD SMP Ora Et Labora Pamulang
SMK Pustek
SMA Yaspita
Strada Villa Melati Mas
Solideo BSD
SMAK PENABUR Bintaro Jaya
SD Islam At Taqwa
MI As Salaamah Pamulang
SMA Muhammadiyah 25 Pamulang
Public Schools
SMAN 1 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 2 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 3 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 4 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 5 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 6 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 8 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 9 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 10 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 11 Tangerang Selatan
SMAN 12 Tangerang Selatan
MAN Insan Cendekia
Public universities
Universitas Terbuka
UIN Syarif Hidayatullah
Government-affiliated colleges
Sekolah Tinggi Akutansi Negara
Geophysics and Meteorology Academy (Sekolah Tinggi Meteorologi Klimatologi dan Geofisika)
Private Universities
Muhammadiyah Jakarta University (Universitas Muhammadiyah Jakarta)
Pamulang University (Universitas Pamulang)
Indonesian Institute of Technology (Institut Teknologi Indonesia)
Pembangunan Jaya University (UPJ)
Bina Sarana Informatika University (UBSI BSD)
BINUS ASO School of Engineering
International University Liaison Indonesia (IULI)
South Tangerang Institute of Technology (ITTS)
Sekolah Tinggi Internasional Konservatori Musik Indonesia (STIKMI)
Sister cities
Albany, New York, United States
Kampong Tanjong Bunut, Brunei Darussalam