Sutiyoso finally announces bus fare increase

JAKARTA (JP): After a week-long postponement, the city administration announced on Wednesday the new bus fares, which represent an increase of between 28 percent and 50 percent over the old fares.

The new fares, which took effect on Wednesday, are outlined in gubernatorial decree No. 1923/2001, which was signed by Governor Sutiyoso on Wednesday.

According to the decree, the fare for regular buses has been increased from Rp 500 to Rp 700, the fare for medium-sized and limited-seat buses has been raised from Rp 700 to Rp 900 and the student fare has gone up from Rp 200 to Rp 300.

The fare for air-conditioned buses was not covered by the decree. Bus operators will be allowed to set the fares for air- conditioned buses, after receiving the approval of the City Council.

Governor Sutiyoso said the decision was made based on the consideration that the central government would not disburse a subsidy it had promised for bus operators following an increase in fuel prices.

"We are sure that the central government will not provide a subsidy. So this is our final decision," Sutiyoso said at City Hall.

In the decree, Sutiyoso urged bus operators to modernize their fleets within two years as well as improve their service.

There are about 20,000 buses registered in the city, owned by 14 bus companies. However, only 7,000 buses currently operate on the streets, and many of these buses are old.

Almost all bus operators reportedly increased their fares on Wednesday, although Sutiyoso had yet to officially announce the decree.

Passengers were forced to pay the new fares when bus conductors showed them newspaper reports about the fare increases.

Alex, a bus passenger, became involved in a spat with the conductor of a Metromini bus plying the Kampung Melayu-Klender route in East Jakarta. Alex was adamant about paying the old fare of Rp 700, but the conductor demanded he pay the new fare of Rp 900.

"Didn't you read that the governor will increase the fares today (Wednesday)," the conductor said while showing Alex a newspaper.

A City Council team consisting of the council's Commission D for development, the City Land Transportation Agency, the Jakarta chapter of the Organization of Land Transportation Owners and the Indonesia Transportation Workers Union, agreed on Wednesday to recommend fare increases similar to those contained in the gubernatorial decree.

Team chairman Sayogo Hendrosubroto said the fare increases were not only based on the recent fuel price hike, but also on the increase in the price of spare parts.

Sayogo, a councillor from the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan), said the council also dismissed the possibility of a subsidy from the government.

Along with the announcement of the fuel price increase on June 15, the government promised to provide a Rp 216 billion subsidy for bus operators.

The government reportedly canceled the subsidy for Jakarta last week because the city planned to increase bus fares. (jun)