Agency confirms proposal on regular bus fare hike

JAKARTA (JP): An agency confirmed it would propose a hike of the regular city bus fare and the elimination of non air- conditioned, limited passenger (Patas) buses to the government.

Speaking to Governor Surjadi Soedirdja yesterday, the City Land Transportation Agency (DLLAJ) head, J.P. Sepang, said the agency would propose the hike soon.

"The proposed Rp 500 (20 U.S. cents) fare is not really a hike, because the agency is proposing the elimination of non air- conditioned Patas buses (with a Rp 700 fare)," he said.

In the proposal, he said, the Rp 300 fare of regular buses and the Rp 700 fare of non air-conditioned Patas buses would be combined and divided in two, which was the proposed Rp 500 bus fare.

"Under the scheme, there would be only air-conditioned Patas buses and Rp 500 regular buses," Sepang said.

Currently bus fleets are classified into three categories: regular buses with a Rp 300 fare, non air-conditioned Patas buses with a Rp 700 fare and air-conditioned Patas buses with a Rp 1,800 fare.

City Council Speaker M.H. Ritonga said the proposed hike should not burden the public.

"Transportation is a complicated matter because it involves many people," Ritonga said, "But people should also be objective about a bus fare hike."

When asked whether the proposed Rp 500 regular bus fare was acceptable, he said it would depend on consumers.

Councilor Lukman F. Mokoginta of the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) said the proposed increase was acceptable as long as it was followed by better service.

"If service remains the same, it's hard to say whether the hike is acceptable or not because people expect improvement," Lukman said.

He added the hike proposal should consider economic conditions, including minimum wage and inflation.

Councilor Muhammad Rodja said the hike was acceptable as long as bus owners guaranteed better service.

"We need concrete proof, not just promises. The problem is how they (bus owners) are going to improve service," Rodja of the United Development Party (PPP) said.

"If the bus fare is increased, there should be no more excuses for not improving service," he said.

Assistant secretary of economic and development affairs, Prawoto S. Danoemihardjo, said on Monday that DLLAJ would propose a regular bus fare hike to the government.

The Rp 200 hike, he said, was being prepared because the existing regular bus fare was no longer adequate to cover bus companies' operational and maintenance costs.

The current low fare, he said, has made some bus companies reluctant to operate regular buses. Some even changed the classification of some of their bus fleets from low-fare regular buses to non air-conditioned Patas buses with a Rp 700 fare.

Governor Surjadi Soedirdja said in his speech last week that the current regular bus fare was inadequate.

However Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto said in March that the government would not raise public bus fares before the general assembly in March next year.

Haryanto was responding to a request by the chairman of the Organization of Land Transportation Owners city branch, Aip Syarifuddin, to raise the regular bus fare.

There are now 3,691 buses (including state-owned PPD buses): 1,900 non air-conditioned Patas buses, 672 air-conditioned Patas buses and 1,119 regular buses -- operating in the city. (ste)