64 private city buses banned from operating

JAKARTA (JP): The City Land Transportation Agency has banned 64 Giri Indah Andalan buses from operating for four days.

M. Djuhdi, the head of the agency's transportation division said yesterday the ban on the private company would be effective from today to April 5.

The Giri Indah Andalan buses were banned because the company failed to operate its Rp 300-fare regular buses.

The company had converted its regular buses into Rp 700-fare, non-air conditioned limited passenger buses, Djuhdi said.

According to the city land transportation rule, for every 100 buses it operates, a bus company is required to run 30 regular buses, 40 AC-limited passenger buses and 30 non-AC limited passenger buses.

The 64 buses, Djuhdi said, were air-conditioned and non-air- conditioned limited passenger buses.

Djuhdi said a ban was the most effective way of making companies comply with the rules.

Last week the agency banned 100 buses of the private company Himpurna Cooperative for five days. It had failed to operate the obligatory 30 percent regular buses and had replaced its regular buses with non-air-conditioned limited passenger buses.

Many of the Rp 300 regular buses were reported to have disappeared from the city routes early last month.

Data released by the city's land transportation agency said that only 439 of the 1,679 regular buses which should have been operating, were operating.

The data also showed that nine companies were not operating their regular buses. The agency has yet to determine their punishment.

Earlier J.P. Sepang, the agency's head, vowed to take strong action against errant bus operators. (11)