Trains readied in case of strikes

BANDUNG, West Java: The state-owned railway company Perumka is preparing 1,030 coaches to accommodate increased passengers should strikes of public transportation drivers spread, an official said yesterday.

Director Soemino Eko Saputro said the company was handling the situation just in the way it dealt with the increased number of passengers during the Idul Fitri holiday.

Company spokesman Helmy Aziz confirmed that a Surabaya-bound Bima train from Jakarta was derailed early yesterday in the vicinity of Madiun in East Java.

There were no casualties in the accident, but traffic was disrupted for six hours.

The coaches were put back in place and pulled to the nearest station at around 8 a.m. A minor landslide is thought to be the most likely cause of the accident. (43)