Govt to raise road tolls on Tuesday

Zakki P. Hakim The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The government will raise road tolls across the country by an average of between 15 percent and 16 percent on Tuesday, Minister of Public Works Djoko Kirmanto said on Monday.

"I'm expecting to sign a decree on the increase in road tolls today," he said on the sidelines of a discussion between his ministry and the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (Kadin).

According to Djoko, the Jakarta city toll would be raised by Rp 500 (51 U.S. cents), from the current Rp 4,000 for private cars to Rp 4,500.

The highest increase would be for Semarang toll roads, where the charges for private cars would be increased by 50 percent from Rp 1,000 to Rp 1,500 and for certain public transportation vehicles by 100 percent from Rp 500 to Rp 1,000.

"In Semarang's case, it was exempted from an increase two years ago. So after years of being stagnant, we are now increasing them," Djoko said.

He added that public transportation vehicles -- excluding taxis -- could enjoy a 25 percent discount if they subscribed to monthly tickets from the operators, considering that their users were mostly from the lower to middle-income bracket.

Djoko acknowledged that there have been many complaints about the poor services provided by toll road operators and questions as to whether the increase in the rates was appropriate.

He said that all operators had submitted their plans to improve their services, including the opening of new toll gates.

He added that the ministry would issue a warning to toll road operators if they failed to fulfill their promise to improve services.

"If an operator does nothing, and fails to meet the minimum requirements of a toll road service, we would make the respective road a public lane. But I hope we would not have to do that," he said.

The private sector supported the government's plan to increase the toll road rates, as long as the increase was based on economic considerations.

"Such a move is needed, as investors need certainty in their projected revenue for their investment," Kadin chairman Mohamad S. Hidayat said.

He was speaking in the context of attracting fresh investment for the country's ailing infrastructure, in which the government needs to give a guarantee that the rates are set based on economic and not political considerations.

Proposed toll increases in Greater Jakarta (Private cars only, in rupiah)

Toll roads Existing Proposed

Jakarta-Cikampek 8,000 9,000

Jakarta-Tangerang Tomang-West Tangerang 2,500 3,500 Tomang-Meruya 1,000 1,500 Tangerang-West Tangerang 1,000 1,500

Jakarta city 4,000 4,500

Serpong-Pondok Aren 2,500 3,000

Ramps Dukuh 1,000 1,500 Taman Mini 1,000 1,500 West Pondok Gede 1,000 1,500 East Pondok Gede 1,000 1,500 Kebon Jeruk 1,000 1,500

Padaleunyi 4,000 4,500

Semarang Seksi A/B/C 1,000 1,500

Cipularang Cikampek-North Purwakarta 4,000 4,500 Padalarang Bypass 1,500 2,000

Surabaya Gempol Waru-Gempol 2,500 3,000 Dupak-Waru 1,500 2,000

Source: PT Jasa Marga