KNKT: Argo Bromo Anggrek train driver instructed to brake gradually before colliding with KRL

Jakarta, VIVA – The National Transport Safety Committee (KNKT) has disclosed braking attempts by the driver of the Argo Bromo Anggrek train before it collided with a KRL at Bekasi Timur Station.

KNKT chair Soerjanto Tjahjono said the driver applied brakes but not to maximum, because he was only instructed by the East Control Centre to brake gradually and to sound the horn.

He made the disclosure at a working meeting with Commission V of the DPR during hearings at the Parliament Complex, Senayan, Central Jakarta, on Thursday, 21 May 2026.

“So the driver did not brake to the maximum because the information received from the East Control Centre was to brake gradually and to sound the horn,” Soerjanto said.

Soerjanto explained that the driver of the Argo Bromo Anggrek had already begun braking from a distance of 1.3 kilometres before the collision location.

At that time, the driver had received information from the control centre of an incident between the KRL and a taxi at the level crossing JPL 85.

“But because he understood from the control centre that there was an incident at JPL 85, you proceed with light braking and a lot of horn blasts; i.e. many horn blasts. So the driver did not brake to the maximum,” he said.

Chair of Commission V, Lasarus, responded, asking how much distance is sufficient for a train to brake to a stop.

“This train is truly safe; what distance do you need to brake to a safe stop?” Lasarus asked.

“If we return to the graph earlier. Well, if he had braked maximally, it would be roughly between 900 and 1,000 metres,” Soerjanto replied.

Previously reported, Transport Minister Dudy Purwagandhi explained the chronology of the accident between the KRL and the Argo Bromo Anggrek at Bekasi Timur Station on 27 April 2026, which killed 16 people.

In a working meeting with Commission V, Dudy played an illustrated video of the crash. He noted that the Commuter Line train 5568A arrived at 20:34, one minute earlier than scheduled, at Bekasi Station. It was followed by Sawunggalih train 116B arriving at Bekasi at 20:35, five minutes late from the timetable.

That Sawunggalih train stopped at Bekasi Station to board passengers and departed again around 20:37 WIB, passing Bekasi Timur Station at around 20:39 WIB.