Bus firms, brokers hike fares by 50%

TANGERANG (JP): At least 20 bus companies at the Cimone bus terminal here have raised ticket prices ahead of the Idul Fitri celebration by up to 50 percent, far above the official allowable raise of only 35 percent.

Prices were further raised by "ticket brokers", who swarmed the terminal, forcing travelers to buy tickets from them rather than from the companies directly.

The bus companies believed to have raised prices beyond the tolerable amount were those going from Tangerang to the Central Java towns of Purwodadi, Semarang, Cilacap, Yogyakarta and Solo.

The official economy fares to Purwodadi, Cilacap, Yogyakarta and Solo, for example, were set at between Rp 17,500 to Rp 18,900, but in reality, passengers would have to pay up to Rp 27,000.

An economy ticket on government-run Damri buses to Cilacap was raised to Rp 18,500 from Rp 12,000, while the one to Yogyakarta was doubled to Rp 27,000.

"Tickets will be tremendously high if a passenger delays his trip until two or three days before Idul Fitri," said Wardi, who was getting on a bus to Solo.

Many people expressed concerns over the substantial increase made by Damri, saying it should have set a good example for privately run bus firms.

"If the government-run bus company also acts in such a way, how about the privately run companies?" asked Sri Hartati, a mother of three, heading to Yogyakarta.

Prices for air-conditioned buses had been increased to RP 60,000 to Rp 80,000, depending on the number of passengers in the bus.

The fare to Solo, for example, had been raised to Rp 60,000 from the official rate of Rp 40,000, and to Yogyakarta, Rp 80,000.

Some passengers urged police to stop the brokers' taking over the terminal.

The flow of passengers from here to Central and East Java is expected to reach its peak on Saturday and Sunday.

An official of Tangerang mayoralty, Nandi Mulya Sudarman, predicted there to be about 100 buses departing from Tangerang during this busy time. (ivy/41)