KAI raises railway fares
Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung
Business and executive class train fares will rise by between five percent and 33 percent on Feb. 1 to compensate for past losses, state-owned railroad operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (PT KAI) announced in Bandung on Tuesday.
PT KAI spokesman Patria Supriyono said the decision to raise the fares followed the earlier cancellation of economy-class fare increases, and involved only 19 trains serving its networks in Java and Sumatra.
The fare hikes, according to Patria, were based on passenger load rates of more than 85 percent, passenger purchasing power and competition with other forms of public transportation, such as airlines and ferries.
"Therefore, certain fares are actually being reduced and we are extending discounts to passengers of the Argobromo, Gumarang and Argowilis super-executive class trains," Patria continued.
The fares for the Argobromo Anggrek train (Jakarta-Surabaya) is being reduced from Rp 240,000 to Rp 220,000 and the Gumarang (Jakarta-Semarang) train from Rp 175,000 to Rp 165,000, while the Argowilis train (Bandung-Surabaya) will have a special fare of only Rp 165,000 from Monday through Thursday as against the normal fare of Rp 195,000.
Fifteen trains running in Java and four others in Sumatra will have their fares increased. Ten of them have the highest load factors in Java, including business and executive class trains bound for Jakarta, and will be subject to 33 percent fare increases.
The Parahyangan train (Bandung-Jakarta) sees fares raised from Rp 30,000 to Rp 40,000 for business class and from 45,000 to Rp 60,000 for executive class. The rises for nine executive and business trains from Jakarta to Surabaya, Malang, Yogyakarta, Semarang, Jombang, Kutoarjo, Cilacap and Cirebon range from Rp 10,000 to Rp 20,000.
From Bandung, apart from the Parahyangan train, the fares for the Lodaya train bound for Solo and the Mutiara Selatan train bound for Surabaya are also being increased by Rp 10,000 respectively.
Outside Bandung and Jakarta, three other trains that will have their fares raised by between Rp 5,000 and Rp 10,000 are the Sancaka (Yogya-Surabaya), Mutiara Timur (Semarang-Banyuwangi) and Logawa trains (Purwokerto Banyuwangi). Business and executive class rail fares in Sumatra that will increase by the same amount are the Sindangwarga, Sriwijaya, Bandarpati and Sribilah trains.
Patria added that the revenue targets from the fare hikes could not yet be calculated as yet in view of the increased discounts for elderly people and pensioners of between 20 percent and 30 percent, and the fare exemptions for children under three traveling in business and executive classes.