Trans-Jakarta Monthly Subscription Fare of Rp200,000 Considered a Solution

Transport analyst Deddy Herlambang believes the Jakarta Transport Council’s (DTKJ) proposal to implement a Trans-Jakarta subscription fare of Rp200,000 per month could be a solution if the regular fare is raised to around Rp5,000 per journey. According to Deddy, the subscription scheme would ease the burden on people who use the service daily. “This is a solution to close the economic fare gap for daily Transjakarta users if the fare is indeed raised and considered quite heavy. With a subscription price, the monthly cost will certainly be cheaper than paying the daily fare,” Deddy said on Monday (6/7). In addition to the subscription fare, Deddy also supports the DTKJ’s proposal that the Mikrotrans or JakLingko service begin charging a fare. He argued that a paid service would build public awareness that service quality must be commensurate with the costs incurred. “Indeed, Mikrotrans must be paid. There must be education for users so they do not assume this service is always free. If the public pays, they also have the right to demand better service,” he stated. Nevertheless, Deddy suggested that the fare implementation be carried out in stages to avoid public unrest. He proposed that the Mikrotrans fare start at Rp1,000 before being raised to Rp2,000 over the following two years. “I suggest a gradual approach, starting at Rp1,000 first. After two years, it can become Rp2,000 so that the public does not experience culture shock,” he concluded. Previously, the Jakarta Transport Council (DTKJ) proposed a subscription fare scheme for Trans-Jakarta bus services to encourage the public to switch to public transport while providing an incentive for regular passengers. DTKJ Chairman Sugihardjo explained that the scheme adopts subscription systems already implemented in various countries. According to Sugihardjo, if the normal fare is later agreed at Rp5,000 per trip (for Trans-Jakarta Non-BRT, BRT, and Mikrotrans), a worker commuting round-trip every working day for a month would have to spend around Rp250,000. “If the normal fare is Rp5,000 for departure and Rp5,000 for return, that is about Rp250,000 a month. Now, if using a subscription fare, we propose a 20 percent discount so they only pay Rp200,000,” Sugihardjo said at Jakarta City Hall on Friday (3/7). He added that the proposal for a Rp200,000 monthly Transjakarta fare received various inputs during public consultations, including regarding the assumption of the number of working days used in the monthly fare calculation.