Jakarta Fair to be made more accessible

Leo Wahyudi S, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Jakartans will have easier access to the Kemayoran Fairground, Central Jakarta, for the 2002 Jakarta Fair, which will open on June 14 through to July 14, as the organizers have promised to provide shuttle buses from downtown to the arena.

The Jakarta International Trade Fair (JITF) Program Development Coordinator, Nugroho S Aditomo, said on Wednesday the organizers would provide six shuttle buses connecting Kemayoran, Borobudur Hotel, Gambir railway station, Sari Pan Pacific Hotel, President Hotel, Mandarin Hotel, Hilton Hotel, Sahid Hotel and Hotel Indonesia to the arena every 30 minutes.

The bus will be free of charge to all those buying an entrance ticket aboard the bus at Rp 6,000 (70 US cents) on weekdays and Rp 7,500 on weekends. Children under five and those over 60 years, veterans and orphans from foundations are free of charge.

"We are providing shuttle buses from major hotels for the guests and those who are reluctant to drive to Kemayoran. They can park their cars at the hotel and take the shuttle bus," Nugroho said.

The Jakarta Fair used to be held at the National Monument (Monas) park in Central Jakarta, but in 1992 it was moved to Kemayoran.

Even though the new venue, a former airport, was more spacious, many people complained about its remote location and the lack of public transportation.

Last year, the organizers had provided shuttle buses but only from Blok M in South Jakarta to Kemayoran. The organizers handed out programs to the public in May last year to provide them with necessary information about the Jakarta Fair and all the events regarding to the city's anniversary.

This year, the organizers have yet to give out the programs.

Providing shuttle buses is a way for the JITF and the city administration, who are jointly staging the Jakarta Fair to commemorate the city's 475th anniversary, and to meet their target of attracting 2 million visitors. They expect a 25 percent increase on the 1.6 million visitors last year.

The organizers also expect the month-long fair to generate a Rp 200 billion, which is higher than last year's Rp 173 billion.

"Around 1,600 participants have booked spaces in the fairground, which meets our target," Nugroho said, adding that last year only 900 companies joined the annual fair.

The organizers have also enlarged lots for participants from 66,000-square-meters to 77,000-square-meters. The enlargement is located at nearby Pasar Gambir to host entertainment shows, art and sports performances, kids competitions and seminars.

The Rp 20 billion fair will also cater to those who want to see updates of World Cup matches, by providing two giant screen broadcasts of the matches live at the fairground.

"The monitors will be set up in the food court and at Pasar Gambir," he said.

About 1,000 people from the military, the police and security guards will be deployed to safeguard the event.

The Jakarta Fair will be open to the public from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. on weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. on weekends. But Pasar Gambir will stay open until 1 a.m. everyday.

However, not all Jakartans are happy about this year's annual event.

Windy, a student at the University of Indonesia objected to the ticket price. "It's a bit expensive for a student. I think Rp 5,000 would be a more reasonable price."