DLLAJ to survey on night transportation

JAKARTA (JP): The City Land Transportation and Traffic Control Agency (DLLAJ) said it will conduct a survey on late night transportation in an effort aimed at developing a system acceptable to both passengers and transportation companies.

"The current night system is not working as well as expected because many companies have refused to operate their vehicles," said Herman Tonglo Langi, the division head of public transportation control department of DLLAJ, yesterday.

Herman explained that the survey will include designated routes for night transport and the hours a fleet operates.

"It is likely that we will implement scheduled public transport in particular areas and hours at night," he added.

Herman said that the second evaluation on late night transportation in September showed the number of buses operating from one day to another varied greatly which passengers find unreliable.

"On Sept. 5 there were many vehicles operating late at night but on Sept. 13 there were only five, on Sept. 17 no vehicles at all and on Sept. 20 there was only three," Herman said.

DLLAJ has issued a policy requiring transportation companies operating city buses to operate 20 percent of their vehicles late at night to fulfill the needs of the public.

Many companies refuse to operate their fleets at night on the grounds that it is not profitable due to the small number of passengers.

The companies also said the fares set by the government for nighttime are too low because they are the same as daytime fares, yet they have to expend extra money as incentives for drivers. The number of passengers is less than enough to compensate.

J.P Sepang, the head of DLLAJ, said recently that a survey showed that many people were reluctant to use public transportation at night because they feel insecure. (yns)