Five busway drivers fired amid city denial<\/p>\n
Damar Harsanto and Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
While hundreds of Jakartans are still enthusiastically trying out
\nthe newly launched TransJakarta Busway every day, five of the 126
\nbusway drivers were fired.<\/p>\n
A staffer from the Jakarta Transportation Agency at the busway
\nbus pool in Pinang Ranti, East Jakarta, said that they were fired
\nbecause they had turned up late for work and had been involved in
\naccidents.<\/p>\n
However, busway operating consortium PT Jakarta Express Trans
\n(PT JET) operational director Payaman Manik Raja said that only
\nthree drivers resigned rather than being fired. He declined to
\nstate the names or reasons.<\/p>\n
The busway drivers -- most of whom are the best from bus
\noperators in the city and who had undergone a week-long training
\nsession at the National Police traffic training center -- had
\nearlier demanded higher payment by PT JET. They had thought
\nearlier that Rp 2 million (US$238) was their basic monthly salary
\nbut were disappointed after finding out that it was their take-
\nhome pay. They demanded the consortium pay them at least Rp 2.7
\nmillion.<\/p>\n
Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso said earlier he would "replace them
\nwith other drivers".<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso also told the busway operator to impose tough
\nsanctions on drivers involved in accidents due to reckless
\ndriving.<\/p>\n
"If necessary, they can be dismissed. If no tougher action
\nwere taken, other problems would follow," he said on Monday.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso was referring in particular to a busway driver whose
\nair-conditioning unit hit a railway bridge on Jl. Matraman Raya,
\nEast Jakarta, on Friday. The road does not lie ion the busway
\ncorridor from Blok M, South Jakarta, to Kota, West Jakarta.<\/p>\n
A staffer at the transportation agency said a replacement air-
\nconditioning unit would cost around Rp 80 million.<\/p>\n
Busway management head Irzal Z. Djamal said that he had warned
\nPT JET about driver negligence that might lead to damage of the
\nbuses.<\/p>\n
"I warned them not to repeat their mistakes. I also told them
\nto repair the damage because the buses must be in good
\ncondition," he said.<\/p>\n
According to PT JET, up to three buses need repair every day.
\nBroken handrails and out-of-order automatic bus doors are the
\nmost common damage. Seven of the total 56 buses have already been
\ndamaged and are temporarily out of service.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, drivers of buses whose routes overlap the busway
\ncorridor are prepared to strike in protest at the city
\nadministration's policy in rerouting them.<\/p>\n
"We shall park our buses outside the presidential palace and
\nhold a big protest there if necessary," said a Ciputat-Kota bus
\ndriver, speaking on condition of anonymity.<\/p>\n
He said most bus crews that served routes that overlapped with
\nthe busway supported the strike plan.<\/p>\n
Currently, 149 buses ply seven routes that overlap the busway
\ncorridor. The routes have been scrapped by the administration to
\nmake way for the busway.<\/p>\n
He said the drivers had planned earlier to strike on Jan. 12,
\nprior to the busway's launch on Jan. 15, but canceled the
\nproposed action after the administration allowed them to run
\ntheir routes as usual.<\/p>\n
"But we have heard that we shall be forbidden from overlapping
\nthe busway route," he said.<\/p>\n
The driver also rejected any plans to transfer their routes to
\nothers because such plans would simply raise protest from bus
\ncrews that had served the routes for a long time, amid tighter
\ncompetition and reduced income.<\/p>\n
Bus crews from different companies have also expressed concern
\nat the possibility that they would no longer be allowed to
\noverlap any part of the busway corridor along their route.<\/p>",
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