Five Train Services Disrupted by Track Erosion in Daop 9

Jember, East Java (ANTARA) – Five train services in the Jember Operational Area (Daop 9) were disrupted on Monday after soil was eroded beside the railway track at kilometre 10+0/1, on the section between Ledokombo and Sempolan in Jember regency, East Java.

The affected services were the Pandanwangi from Jember to Ketapang, the Pandanwangi from Ketapang to Jember, the Tawangalun from Ketapang to Malang, the Logawa from Jember to Purwokerto, and the Sritanjung from Ketapang to Lempuyangan.

“The Pandanwangi service from Jember to Ketapang, which had been held at Kalisat Station, was cancelled. The 10.00am departure of the Pandanwangi from Ketapang to Jember was also cancelled,” said Cahyo Widiantoro, head of legal affairs and public relations at KAI Daop 9, in Jember.

He said KAI would provide a 100 per cent refund to all affected passengers for the two cancelled services, in accordance with the applicable rules.

The Tawangalun, held at Kalibaru Station, had part of its journey cancelled on the Kalibaru–Kalisat section. To help passengers continue their journeys, KAI arranged replacement buses. Passengers were transferred by bus from Kalibaru Station to Kalisat Station under an overstappen transfer arrangement.

“Tawangalun passengers have also received Service Recovery (SR) in accordance with the applicable rules and regulations, as part of KAI’s responsibility to customers affected by the disruption,” he said.

On arrival at Kalisat Station, the Tawangalun service to Malang would continue using the Pandanwangi trainset. The rolling-stock arrangement was intended to allow passengers to continue their journey while taking operational conditions and safety into account.

The Logawa service from Ketapang to Purwokerto remained at Kalibaru Station pending confirmation that the section was safe to use. The Sritanjung was also being held at Glenmore Station until inspections confirmed that the track could be safely traversed, he said.

Despite the adjustments, the Pandalungan service from Jember to Gambir departed as scheduled at 9.00am, demonstrating that train operations were being managed according to conditions and safety assessments on each route.

Cahyo said KAI Daop 9 Jember was coordinating among its operations, rolling-stock and infrastructure teams to respond promptly to developments on the ground. The track would be thoroughly inspected before trains were permitted to pass again.

The erosion caused delays to several services arriving at their destinations. The Tawangalun was 269 minutes late, or almost five hours; the Sritanjung was 184 minutes late; and the Logawa was up to 213 minutes late at some destination stations.

“We apologise for the inconvenience. The company is committed to managing infrastructure and operations as effectively as possible, while continuing to make safety its top priority,” he said.