Travel by train is safe: Official

Travel by train is safe: Official

JAKARTA (JP): An official at state railway company PT Kereta
Api Indonesia (KAI) assured the public on Tuesday that it was
safe for commuters to use trains.

"We have urged our train dispatchers to ensure that there will
be no trains speeding on single line tracks anymore," KAI
spokesman for Greater Jakarta Zainal Abidin told The Jakarta
Post.

He said the company would do its best to cope with the
problem.

"We assure passengers of their safety to the best of our
ability. If accidents happen again, it will be the will of God,"
he said.

So far, human error, together with defective train signals and
serious damage at KAI's central traffic control (CTC) system in
Manggarai, South Jakarta, has been blamed as the main cause of
Monday's head-on collision between the two trains. The trains
collided on a single line track at the Bumi Serpong Damai housing
complex on Monday, killing four people and injuring 37 others.

Following the latest accident, Director General of Land
Transportation Santo Budiono announced his resignation on
Tuesday.

The resignation letter, No. 205/DJ/V/2000 and dated May 2,
2000, was sent to the minister of communications on Tuesday
morning.

Minister of Communications Agum Gumelar has yet to officially
approve Santo's request, but said he respected his subordinate's
decision.

"I may also follow him (to request retirement). But it will
depend on the President's judgment of my performance."

Santo, a retired Army major general, said there were a myriad
of problems behind the train disasters, including the recent
economic crisis, which might have affected the poor performance
of the railway company.

"I am responsible for the accidents. This is my moral
responsibility to the people," he told reporters at the Ministry
of Communications.

"Technically the causes of the crash could be clearly
explained, but morally I take accountability."

He said he decided to resign after the latest accident in
Serpong, as seven accidents within three months was too much.

"People are suffering as a result of these accidents while the
railway service was fully on my shoulders.

"I herewith also express my apology to the people," Santo
said.

On April 18 four people were killed in a three-train collision
in Karawang, West Java. At least eight people were injured in the
accident.

On April 28, more than 20 people were injured when a Jabotabek
commuter train hit a Pakuan express train in South Jakarta.

Santo was appointed director general of land transportation on
April 17, 1996 after heading the education and training
department at the same ministry.

Some people said they hoped that Santo's resignation could
become a valuable lesson for Indonesian government officials, who
are usually adamant about holding their posts despite ample
failures.

Meanwhile, KAI national spokesman Gatot Wibowo dismissed
speculation that the company's president director Edie Haryoto
had also resigned.

"Up to this time, there is no information available saying
that KAI's president director has resigned," he said in the West
Java capital of Bandung on Tuesday.

Private television channel ANteve quoted Agum on Tuesday
evening as saying that Edie had joined Santo in resigning from
his post.

Gatot said the company was now counting the losses caused by
the accident. "The losses are estimated at between Rp 2 billion
and Rp 3 billion," he said.

Zainal Abidin said the company had set up a special team to
investigate the cause of the accident, comprising members of the
company's staff.

"We will investigate why the train dispatchers from both
stations dispatched the trains at the same time. But we are
waiting to hear from the police, since the two men are still
being questioned by them," he said.

Besides human error, defective equipment also contributed to
the accident.

"Lightning struck our (CTC) system on Friday, meaning that the
operation center was not able to locate the position of trains
throughout the city," he said, adding that the train drivers and
dispatchers were forced to use walkie-talkies and interstation
telephones.

Technically, the electricity from the lightning, which struck
the company's 75-meter-high lightning rod, should have gone to
the ground via the available cable.

But the cable, part of which was apparently damaged, split the
electricity flow to the panel of cables at the operation center,
a technician at the center said.

Another KAI official, Whosep Muktamar, said on Monday that the
repair of the CTC would be completed on Wednesday.

As of Tuesday, several company staff members were still busy
repairing the burned devices on the third floor of the operation
center's building.

A staff member, who requested anonymity, said the repair of
the telephones could take one week. (25/asa/dja/sur)