Train drivers: Too stressed-out to relax properly
\n
\nBy Sri Muninggar Saraswati<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Many kids love traveling by train. They can have
\nso much fun inside the carriages, they can even walk from one to
\nanother. Therefore, train seats are always fully booked,
\nespecially during holidays.<\/p>\n
Some of the kids might wish to become train drivers someday
\nwhen they grow up. However, they may not realize the high risk
\nawaiting them if they choose that profession. A train driver is
\nresponsible for the safety of hundreds of passengers as far as
\ntheir destination.<\/p>\n
Fifty-two-years-old Yanto, a train driver of state-owned
\nrailway company PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI), said he must be
\nfully alert to operate the locomotive and observe all the signals
\nalong the railway during a journey.<\/p>\n
"It's not easy. I feel like a robot. I don't move from my
\ncabin even if I want to pee," he said, adding that he always
\ncarries an empty bottle during working hours as he is banned from
\nleaving the cabin.<\/p>\n
Yanto said a train driver must follow train operation rules,
\nincluding those that cover speed in particular places and the
\npriority regarding which goes first when two trains meet at
\ncertain points.<\/p>\n
However, the train driver's high concentration does not always
\nguarantee their safety. Slum areas can frequently be found
\nalongside railway lines -- especially in large cities like
\nJakarta, Semarang and Surabaya -- and passing them demands extra
\nconcentration.<\/p>\n
"I have to be extra-careful when passing such places," said
\nMadi. He slows down when approaching slum areas so that the
\noccupants will not throw rocks at the carriage windows.<\/p>\n
Most train drivers have experienced hitting someone or a
\nvehicle full of passengers in crowded areas or at a crossroad
\nwithout a gate.<\/p>\n
Forty-six-years-old Kurniadi expressed his guilt after he
\nstruck a man in Padalarang, causing his death.<\/p>\n
"I think it's better to kill one man than jeopardize the lives
\nof hundreds of my passengers," he asserted, saying a sudden stop
\ncould cause a train to derail.<\/p>\n
Kurniadi emphasized the fact that a train cannot stop
\nimmediately. It takes hundreds meters to come to a complete halt
\nafter he pulls the brake.<\/p>\n
The high risk demands that they prepare the train -- the
\nlocomotive, engine car and passenger carriages -- two hours
\nbefore departure.<\/p>\n
Gito, 48, illustrated that after the two-hour preparation, he
\nhad to take a train from Gambir station in Central Jakarta to
\nTugu station in Yogyakarta, a journey that took over nine hours.<\/p>\n
He deserves time to rest in the destination station -- the
\ntrain driver lounge belonging to PT KAI -- before going back to
\nJakarta. Once a week, Gito, like other train drivers, has a day
\noff.<\/p>\n
PT KAI's Jakarta operation spokesman Zainal Abidin said train
\ndrivers work on a shift basis and each of them is supposed to
\ndrive for at least seven hours.<\/p>\n
"They don't work like people at a manufacturing plant; they
\nwork to a timetable established by PT KAI. Therefore, they don't
\nget fixed holidays."<\/p>\n
PT KAI currently has 1,600 trains serving 1,300 routes, but
\nthe company has insufficient drivers, although Zainal declined to
\nelaborate.<\/p>\n
Does that mean becoming a train driver is easy? Apparently
\nnot. PT KAI has established training standards for newly
\nrecruited train drivers and each of them must attend the school
\nin Yogyakarta for two years.<\/p>\n
With such a high level of responsibility, do train drivers get
\nwell paid? Fifty-years-old Iya, who has been serving PT KAI for
\n20 years, earns a salary of Rp 1 million (US$110) per month. A
\nfigure which is definitely too small to survive in Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The father of two children admitted that his salary was not
\nenough to feed his family. Luckily, his wife earns extra money by
\nrunning a food stall at his home.<\/p>\n
Iya, whose 24-year-old eldest daughter got married, is hoping
\nto provide a better education for his son, currently in high
\nschool, by sending him to university.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/train-drivers-too-stressed-out-to-relax-properly-1447893297",
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