Preparations mount as busway begins trial period<\/p>\n
Novan Iman Santosa, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The city administration finally started the trial period of its
\nlong-awaited busway project, temporarily called TransJakarta,
\nlast Friday as two trial buses made the first public appearance
\nof an expected fleet of 60 buses to ply the route linking Blok M
\nin South Jakarta and Kota in West Jakarta.<\/p>\n
But many questions remain as to whether the new public
\ntransportation system will be a success or will end up as another
\nill-fated white elephant.<\/p>\n
Early signs of possible failure emerged as the City
\nTransportation Agency was forced to postpone the busway trial
\nperiod several times since last October.<\/p>\n
Experts and activists say the repeated delays are signs that
\nthe agency does not have a solid concept but officials say that
\nit was simply because they were trying to accommodate all inputs.<\/p>\n
\"We were made aware that there were so many loopholes in the
\ninitial design so we postponed the launch of the trial period,\"
\nhead of the agency's traffic engineering division, Udar Pristono,
\ntold reporters on the sidelines of the trial period launch at
\nCity Hall.<\/p>\n
\"This project is aimed at providing a reliable and convenient
\nmode of transportation for residents from the middle and lower
\nincome groups so we must prepare it well.\"<\/p>\n
Ordinary buses need some 120 minutes on the 12.9-kilometer
\nBlok M-Kota route for a round trip while the busway will only
\nneed some 90 minutes as it would run along a dedicated lane.<\/p>\n
\"Not only will passengers enjoy faster travel, they will also
\nfind it more comfortable and convenient as the buses are air-
\nconditioned and have a reliable headway of between one and a half
\nminutes to five minutes.<\/p>\n
\"Such a short headway means that passengers will not have to
\nwait too long if they miss the bus while at the same time
\nincreasing the busway capacity.\"<\/p>\n
The fare is set at Rp 2,500 (28 U.S. cents) while current bus
\nfares range from Rp 900 to Rp 3,500 depending on the bus type.<\/p>\n
Pristono said that demand on the Blok M-Kota route was about
\n12,600 passengers per hour in one direction.<\/p>\n
Currently the agency is testing two different buses to see
\nwhich one is better suited for the project, the Japanese Hino and
\nGerman Mercedes Benz.<\/p>\n
The Hino bus has 31 seats and the Mercedes Benz has 30 seats.
\nBoth have a capacity of 55 standing passengers each.<\/p>\n
The buses have doors on both sides to accommodate various
\nsituations along the route. It is planned that the shelters will
\nbe in the right-hand side of the bus from Blok M until Harmoni in
\nWest Jakarta. Entering Jl. Gajah Mada in West Jakarta, the buses
\nwill use the left-hand side doors.<\/p>\n
There will be 21 stops along the route served by 39 shelters
\nas there are several combined shelters to serve both directions.<\/p>\n
Busway rapid transit (BRT) is a common, widely-applied system
\nin Latin American cities such as Bogota, the capital city of
\nColombia; Curitiba, a city of Brazil; and Quito, the capital city
\nof Equador.<\/p>\n
Governor Sutiyoso is slated to visit Bogota to observe the
\nTransMilenio busway system, which was started on Dec. 18, 2000,
\nsome time in March.<\/p>\n
Agency officials had visited Bogota to learn the system and
\nimplement any possible principles here.<\/p>\n
TransMilenio's official website www.transmilenio.gov.co
\nreveals that the first phase includes three routes totaling some
\n41 kilometers constructed between 1998 and 2001.<\/p>\n
There are three five-year stages until 2016 when the system is
\nexpected to reach all districts of Bogota encompassing 387.9
\nkilometers.<\/p>\n
Pristono told The Jakarta Post that TransJakarta would have a
\ntotal of 12 routes when it is fully operational.<\/p>\n
\"The second route will serve the Hotel Indonesia traffic
\ncircle in Central Jakarta and Rawamangun in East Jakarta. We will
\nstudy this route once the Blok M-Kota is running well,\" he said.<\/p>\n
In contrast to TransMilenio's clear time frame, Pristono said
\nhe could not give a clear time frame for the project or how many
\nkilometers of road were involved.<\/p>\n
Further homework for city officials will be how to teach the
\nresidents to use this new system as people have to be taught to
\nqueue and buy tickets before entering the shelters.<\/p>",
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