Poor service at Argogede

Poor service at Argogede

From Republika

On Nov. 9 and Nov. 10, my wife and I traveled to Bandung on the Argogede JB250 train, since tickets for the Parahyangan line were sold out. Our train left at 10 a.m..

We all know that the Argogede is on the same level as the Argobromo and Sembrani, meaning that it is one of the luxury train services in every sense of the word. Therefore, the state railway company has established higher tariffs for these lines. These prices make it possible to keep the price of economy tickets down. It is a cross subsidizing system. We know that and we go along with it.

It is regrettable, however, that some passengers do not really understand this fact. What's more, the company shows a lack of concern over the damaged equipment. However, it is not surprising that many facilities on the train are out of order. For example, first aid facilities have not been given enough attention by the company. Below are other examples: * The automatic train doors have to be manually handled. The doors failed to open automatically when I stood at the threshold. * The tables before our seats were left gaping, they were not fully drawn out, but neither were they folded up. In our coach, there were more than 10 tables in the same condition. I tried them out and got the impression that they were wrongly constructed or designed. Train tables designed for Indonesian travelers should be much sturdier. They should not only be strong enough to hold plates and glasses, but sturdy enough to allow a person to sit on them. * When we arrived in Bandung, I wanted to immediately order a return ticket for Jakarta the following morning. My younger brother acquired one with great difficulty, one-and-a-half hours before departure. When we entered our coach, we discovered many empty seats. Unsold seats!

Rumors had it that a group of "important people" reserved most of the seats, then canceled them at the last minute.

I would like to appeal to those important persons not to play around with the state railway company's schedule. This would only harm several sides: passengers, the company and the finance ministry. * Another thing: If you are sitting on the second floor of Gambir Station, watch out! Someone once dropped a lit cigarette on my wife's head from the platform above. * There are also many people milling around at this station: passengers, people welcoming arrivals, drivers, food and drink sellers, paper and magazine sellers and parking attendants. They all would appreciate lavatory facilities. Do not be surprised if you happen to see someone facing a hedge or a tree to answer the call of nature in Monas park. Is it any wonder that an obnoxious odor hangs in the air around that area? Another faulty design.

I would like to appeal to the state railway company to make improvements before these shortcomings become worse. A British friend of mine once gave me a piece of advice: "A stitch in time saves nine," he said.

S. SUNARTO

Jakarta