Administration may review bus fare hike

JAKARTA (JP): The city is considering reviewing an initial plan to double the fare on city buses in the capital, an executive said on Monday.

Head of the city's land transportation division of the Ministry of Communication, Feisal Amir, said that the strong wave of public objections against the plan had forced the city to reconsider the hike.

"From what I read in the media, city residents were so angry about the plan. What if the proposal became a reality?" Feisal told The Jakarta Post by phone.

"The city administration, therefore, will definitely take people's opinions into consideration," he added.

Feisal, however, refused to elaborate on whether the plan would be revoked or only postponed for a while.

As reported earlier, the ministry planned to hike the fare for regular buses in Jakarta from Rp 300 (US four cents) per passenger to Rp 900, non-airconditioned express and limited (PATAS) buses from Rp 700 to Rp 1,350, minibuses from Rp 500 to Rp 1,150 and mikrolet (minivans) from Rp 800 to Rp 1,350.

The ministry planned to increase bus fare from late this month and continue to hike the rate in stages during the year.

The fare for regular buses, for instance, was initially set for Rp 600 this month before a hike to Rp 900 later.

Minister of Communications Giri Suseno Hadihardjono said his main concern was city commuters witnessing a serious drop in the number of operational buses, as bus owners would no longer operate their fleet due to the skyrocketing price of vehicle spare parts and new buses as well as the declining number of passengers.

Data from Organda revealed that of 21,987 buses registered here, only 70 percent, or 15,390 vehicles, are still operating on the city streets since the economic crisis hit the country in July 1997.

The number of buses operating on the streets has been dropping each day.

Unlike the past few months, commuters nowadays have to wait hours before reaching their destination due to a limited number of buses available.(ylt)