Urgent KRL Demand: KAI to Re-import Second-hand Trains from Japan

The President Director of PT Kereta Api Indonesia (Persero), Bobby Rasyidin, stated that KAI plans to import second-hand trains from Japan as a transition during a period when domestic production remains inadequate.

“This is our transition,” said Bobby in Jakarta on Wednesday (23/09/2026), when questioned regarding the plan to import used electric multiple unit (KRL) trains from Japan.

According to him, importing second-hand trains is an urgent necessity, given that many existing KRL units are over 40 years old. He explained that importing used trains is a better option because it does not take a long time; once approved, the process only requires one to two months. This differs from importing new trains, which can take one to two years and could potentially disrupt domestic train production.

“If we import new ones, domestic train production will be disrupted. These second-hand units are only for the transition period,” he noted.

Bobby stated that the current demand for KRL is very pressing, especially as domestic production cannot yet meet existing requirements. Consequently, KAI will import 23 KRL trainsets, consisting of seven SF12 units and 16 SF8 units, to replace several trains aged over 40 years.

“We are proposing seven trainsets with SF-12 and 16 trainsets with SF-8. Why do we differentiate the SF? Because some platforms at our stations are not yet ready for 12-car configurations,” he added.

Bobby further mentioned that the trains to be imported from Japan are intended to be used for the next 10 years while domestic production capacity is being improved and increased.

“The plan is to use them for 10 years, and we will implement this immediately because there have been many complaints from passengers,” he concluded.