Proposal on city bus fare hike being prepared

JAKARTA (JP): The City Land Transportation Agency (DLLAJ) will urge the government to raise the regular city bus fare as it is considered too low, an official said yesterday.

Assistant secretary of economic and development affairs, Prawoto S. Danoemihardjo, said that the proposal was currently being prepared because the existing regular bus fare was no longer adequate to cover operational costs borne by bus companies.

"I can't reveal the amount of the proposed fare, it's not finalized yet," Prawoto said at his office after calling the agency's head, J.P. Sepang.

The existing regular bus fare was set at Rp 300 (12 US cents) by the Ministry of Transportation in 1996 after receiving the municipality's recommendation.

Prawoto said that the proposed hike was expected to enable bus companies to cover operational costs, including the repair of buses which were out of order.

He said that due to the low bus fare, bus companies were reluctant to operate buses on designated routes. Some companies even changed the classification of some of their bus fleets from low-fare regular buses to non air-conditioned limited passenger (Patas) buses with a Rp 700 fare.

Bus fares, he said, were set based on a city standard, that included bus procurement, service, depreciation and maintenance costs, and wages for bus drivers.

Governor Surjadi Soedirdja acknowledged in a speech last week that the current regular bus fare was no longer adequate. However, he did not say whether the fare should be increased.

The agency's latest data says that only 439 of 1,679 regular buses owned by private companies operate in the city.

Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto said in March that the government would not raise public bus fares before the general assembly in March next year.

The minister made the remark in response to a request by the chairman of the Organization of Land Transportation Owners (Organda) city-branch, Aip Syarifuddin, that the regular bus fare be raised to Rp 500 (20 U.S. cents) from the current Rp 300.

Aip said the increase would help Organda members cover operational and maintenance costs.

In addition to the proposed bus fare hike, Prawoto said that DLLAJ would also propose limiting bus types to only two, namely regular buses or non air-conditioned Patas buses, and air- conditioned Patas buses.

Currently bus fleets are classified into three categories: regular buses with a Rp 300 fare, non air-conditioned Patas buses with a Rp 700 fare and air-condition Patas buses with a Rp 1,800 fare.

Councilor M. Rodja of the United Development Party (PPP) said yesterday that limiting bus classifications to two types would help improve transportation services.

He said that currently there was no difference in service between regular buses and non-air conditioned Patas buses. "Patas bus passengers are still forced to stand up because the buses fill beyond their capacity," Rodja said.

City regulations only allow Patas buses to carry 10 extra passengers above seat capacity during peak hours. However, complaints are often disregarded by bus drivers.

According to DLLAJ data, there are now 3,691 buses (including those owned by state-owned city bus company) -- 1,900 non air- conditioned Patas buses, 672 air-conditioned Patas buses and 1,119 regular buses -- operating in the city. The buses ply 217 routes throughout the city. (ste)