Busway operators to handle feeder lines
Busway operators to handle feeder lines
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
The Jakarta administration has said it will require the operators
of the new busway corridors to set up and operate feeder routes.
"We want the new busway operators not only to take care of the
lucrative business of the busway, but also to handle less
lucrative lines like the feeder buses for the busway," City
Secretary Ritola Tasmaya told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
The lack of a functioning feeder system has plagued the first
busway corridor, which stretches from Blok M in South Jakarta to
Kota in West Jakarta. Observers believe the inability to set up a
working feeder system lies in the appointment of separate
managements for the busway trunk line and its feeder system.
Ticket sales for feeder buses plunged sharply to only 234
tickets sold in December from 1,558 during the first month of the
busway's operation last year.
Passengers have complained that many crew members on feeder
buses refuse to accept busway feeder tickets, requiring
passengers to pay in cash instead.
City Transportation Agency head Rustam Effendi Sidabutar said
his office was studying different types of feeder systems that
might be appropriate for the busway system, including the use of
shuttle buses.
He said the feeder system would connect with the busway trunk
line by use of a shared ticketing system.
The administration is building two new busway corridors
linking Pulogadung in East Jakarta to Harmoni in Central Jakarta,
and Harmoni to Kalideres in West Jakarta. The new corridors will
start operating in October this year.
The administration has prioritized three bus operators as the
operators of the new busway lines because their old routes will
be replaced by the new corridors. These companies are state-owned
bus operator PPD, Mayasari Bhakti and Steady Safe.
"However, we are still opening the bidding for interested
companies to join in the consortium that will operate the
busway," Rustam said.
In addition to the second and third busway corridors, the
administration also plans to speed up the development of another
12 busway corridors by 2007.
However, City Public Works Agency head Fodly Misbach said the
construction of new busway corridors would likely hit a snag
because of land acquisition problems.
"We need to acquire land on several roads along three planned
corridors," he said, specifically mentioning a planned route from
Manggarai to Pasar Minggu, both in South Jakarta, as one of the
troubled corridors.