[JAKARTA] Transjakarta Busway - A lot of pictures

TransJakarta line 2 and 3 news

TransJakarta balks at buying pricey new Busway buses
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

TransJakarta Busway (BP TransJakarta) revealed Tuesday that the new buses proposed by the consortium of private bus operators, PT TransBatavia, would cost Rp 1.5 billion (approximately US$153,000) each.

The price is almost twice the amount of the buses procured for the first busway corridor, which ranged between Rp 821.7 million and Rp 846.5 million.

"We think that the bus price proposed by the consortium is too high. Higher bus costs simply mean a higher allottment from the city budget," TransJakarta manager Irzal Z Djamal stated in a hearing with the City Council's commission D that oversees transportation and development affairs.

Irzal said his firm had written to Governor Sutiyoso to ask if he would approve the high price of the buses as well as the brand to be used, Daewoo.

The city transportation agency has recommended the use of compressed natural gas-fueled buses made by South Korean firm for the new busway project.

"We need the (Governor's) approval as a legal basis for us to follow up on the contract with TransBatavia, the company that will manage the buses on the second and third busway routes," Irzal said.

He also added that it was doubtful that Daewoo was the only producer that could provide buses with the specifications required by the transportation agency.

It was necessary to have all things considered to evade legal problems as the Corruption Eradication Commission was currently investigating alleged corruption in the procurement of the buses for the first corridor, Irzal said.

"We also anticipate looming maintenance problems during the operation of the new buses since Daewoo has no authorized dealer here," he added.

Irzal also said that the consortium had estimated that it would charge the administration between Rp 16,000 and Rp 18,000 per kilometer for each bus in the first five years of operation. In the first busway project, the charge was only Rp 6,400 per kilometer.

"Of course, we won't be able to pay the huge charges with the revenue we obtain from the sold tickets unless we raise significantly the fares or provide a much bigger subsidy," he said.

TransBatavia president director Azis Rismaya Mahfud said that his company would not be able to provide the buses before the busway's scheduled opening in December this year due to some major lingering problems.

"We need a contract with BP TransJakarta to make a deal with Daewoo as well as to get loans from banks," he said in the hearing with the commission earlier on Tuesday.

He said that the launch of the new busway project would be delayed until "March next year at the earliest."

TransBatavia groups four companies, which routes are being affected by the new busway: Mayasari Bakti with 50 percent of shares, Steady Safe with 23 percent of shares, state bus company PPD with 22 percent and PT Metromini with 5 percent.

After launching the first busway corridor along Blok M in South Jakarta to Kota in West Jakarta early last year, the administration is finalizing the development of the second and third of the busway routes from Pulogadung in East Jakarta to Harmoni in Central Jakarta and Harmoni to Kalideres in West Jakarta.

Busway firms may be replaced
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso said Thursday that his administration would remove bus companies that have bad loans with banks from a consortium in charge of developing the city's new busway routes.

"We will verify whether they (the companies) have bad debt. If they do, we will replace them with other firms," Sutiyoso announced at City Hall on the sidelines of a meeting with city leaders on the launch of a campaign against thug gangs in the capital.

He was commenting on a report that two members of the TransBatavia consortium, which will be in charge of the busway Corridors II and III -- PT Mayasari Bakti and PT Metromini -- had failed to repay outstanding loans from city-owned Bank DKI.

Corridor II will stretch from Pulogadung in East Jakarta to Harmoni in Central Jakarta, while Corridor III from Harmoni to Kalideres in West Jakarta. They are expected to begin operation early next year.

According to a letter sent by Bank DKI to Bank Indonesia dated July, 5, 2005, Mayasari owes the bank Rp 22.7 billion (US$2.5 million), while Metromini still owes Rp 16 billion to Bank DKI.

The loans, which Bank DKI classifies as bad debts, were part of liquidity loans given to public transportation firms between November and December 1999 with a low interest of 6 percent.

Mayasari and Metromini have refused to comment on the report, but did make the assertion that the loans were taken out by the previous owners.

"We will require those companies to repay their respective obligations first," he stressed.

Aside from PT Mayasari Bakti and PT Metromini, which have 50 percent and 5 percent of shares, respectively, the consortium also groups two other companies whose routes are being affected by the new busway routes -- Steady Safe with 23 percent and state bus company PPD with 22 percent.

He also said he had not been informed about the consortium's proposal to buy Daewoo buses from South Korea at the price of Rp 1.5 billion each for Corridors II and III -- roughly twice the price of the buses used for the first busway route of between Rp 821.7 million and Rp 846.5 million.

TransBatavia said Tuesday that it had proposed compressed natural gas-fueled buses made by South Korean firm Daewoo for the new buses.

The Daewoo buses reportedly have automatic transmissions with 11,000-cc engines that produce 290 horsepower.

"Of course, we will re-check whether such a price is proper," he asserted.

TransJakarta Busway Management (BP TransJakarta) head Irzal Z Djamal had said that the price too high.

"The administration has to dig deeper into its wallet to pay for a higher ticket-price subsidy or raise ticket prices," he said without elaborating on the details of the expected subsidy or revenue from the tickets.

He said that TransBatavia had recommended a distance-based ticketing system for the new busway projects to keep the subsidy costs from increasing too much, if it stuck with the flat ticketing system.

The second busway corridor from Pulogadung in East Jakarta to Harmoni in Central will be 13.4 kilometers long, while the third route from Harmoni to Kalideres in West Jakarta is 18 kilometers, as compared to the current 12.9-kilometer route from Blok M in South Jakarta to Kota in West Jakarta.

PT TransBatavia president director Azis Rismaya Mahfud acknowledged that his company would not be able to provide the buses ahead of the schedule of the busway operation in December this year due to financial problems, saying it would likely launch the busway project in March 2006.


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Busway routes to open before buses bought
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Governor Sutiyoso insisted that his administration would stick to its initial plan to launch the new busway corridors by the end of this year, although the busway operator would not be able to get the new compressed natural gas-fueled buses ready by that time.

The second busway corridor will link Pulogadung in East Jakarta to Harmoni in Central Jakarta and from Harmoni to Kalideres in West Jakarta.

"I have decided that the new busway project will be operational by the end of this year," Sutiyoso said on Friday.

He was asked to comment on a statement made by the consortium of bus operators, PT TransBatavia, that it would not be able to procure the buses ahead of the schedule amid glaring financial problems shrouding some of the consortium members.

Two of four companies grouped in TransBatavia, PT Mayasari Bakti and PT Metromini, which hold 50 percent and 5 percent shares respectively, have bad debts with city-owned Bank DKI.

Mayasari owes the bank Rp 22.7 billion, while Metromini has Rp 16 billion in bad debts owed to Bank DKI.

The outstanding loans that have turned into bad debts are part of the liquidity scheme given to public transport enterprises between November and December 1999 with a low interest rate of 6 percent.

"I have stressed that we would leave them (the companies) behind and replace them with other operators should they obstruct the implementation of the project," Sutiyoso asserted.

Besides Mayasari and Metromini, other companies in the consortium are Steady Safe with 23 percent shares and state bus company PPD with 22 percent.

City Secretary Ritola Tasmaya revealed that the administration would use existing diesel-fueled buses for the maiden ride.

"We have at least 30 buses we've procured as a backup fleet for the first corridor. We will use them until the new CNG-fueled buses are ready," he said.

TransBatavia president director Azis Rismaya Mahfud said that the CNG-fueled buses would only be ready for operation in March next year at the earliest.

He complained that the CNG-fueled buses that the administration stipulated had made the procurement of the buses more expensive.

The consortium has proposed the procurement of the first batch of 126 buses, each priced at Rp 1.5 billion. The bus produced by South Korean firm Daewoo, will have automatic transmission. It also has 290 horsepower from its 11,000 cubic centimeter engine, to carry the weight of the bus, which also include seven big CNG tanks.

Sutiyoso's administration has been eager to use CNG as part of campaign to use alternative sources of energy and to help reduce air pollution in the world's third most polluted city.

"The use of CNG is final for the busway project. We also plan to expand the use of CNG for other public transportation vehicles in the city," Sutiyoso said.

New firms invited to join busway consortium
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

TransJakarta Busway Management (BP TransJakarta) says that firms interested in taking part in the operation of the busway project still have the chance to join consortium TransBatavia.

"The City Transportation Agency has granted four bus operators whose routes are affected by new busway routes roles in the operation of the busway, but will also leave other parts to new companies wanting to participate in the project," Irzal Z. Djamal said over the weekend.

BP TransJakarta is the board assigned by the city administration to oversee the entire busway project.

The new companies, he said, would also be in charge of the procurement of buses, like TransBatavia's role in the project.

"Ideally, the new busway routes will be served by 204 buses. At least 126 buses will be purchased by four companies grouped in the TransBatavia, while the remaining 78 will be provided by the new companies," he said.

The four companies grouped in TransBatavia are PT Mayasari Bakti with the lion's share of 50 percent in the consortium, followed by Steady Safe with 23 percent, state bus company PPD with 22 percent and PT Metromini with 5 percent.

After successfully launching the first 12.9-kilometer busway route from Blok M in South Jakarta to Kota in West Jakarta early last year, the administration has now finalized the development of the second and third busway corridors.

The second corridor links a 14-kilometer route from Pulogadung in East Jakarta to Harmoni in Central Jakarta, while the third is 19 kilometers in length, stretching from Harmoni to Kalideres in West Jakarta.

The administration plans to develop 15 busway corridors by 2010.

Planned busway corridors

Pulogadung-Harmoni route: - planned bus stops: 23 locations - number of buses: 83 units

allocations:

- Mayasari Bakti: 26 units

- PPD : 11 units

- Steady Safe : 9 units

- Metromini : 5 units

- new operators : 32 units - estimated passengers: 6,860 passengers/hour/two directions

Harmoni-Kalideres route: - planned bus stops: 16 locations - number of buses: 121 buses

allocations:

- Mayasari Bakti: 37 units

- Steady Safe : 21 units

- PPD : 17 units

- new operators : 46 units - estimated passengers: 8,786 passengers/hour/two directions

Source: BP TransJakarta Busway Management

In the beginning bus operators rejected to change their route. it is proved now people prefer BRT than traditional bus routes.

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Bus routes changed to adjust to busway

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The Jakarta Transportation Agency has decided to change 11 regular and air-conditioned bus routes in order to harmonize them with the Blok M-Kota busway corridor.

Agency head Rustam Effendy Sidabutar told reporters at City Hall on Monday that transportation companies had also requested the route changes due to a major drop in the number of passengers following the launch of the city's first busway corridor in January 2004.

"The changes were made as the bus operators whose routes run parallel to the busway have complained of a sharp decline in passengers due to the operation of the busway," Rustam said.

The changes will take effect on Wednesday morning.

No figures are available on how severely regular bus services have been hit since the opening of the busway.

However, most passengers traveling between Blok M and Kota now use the busway.

The number of passengers using the busway has risen to an average of 45,000 people daily from only 28,000 during in mid-January last year.

Rustam said that besides changing the routes of regular and air-conditioned buses, his agency was also shortening a number of bus routes in response to requests made by bus operators.

"Some bus operators have asked for shorter routes as they are experiencing difficulties with the longer routes due to worsening traffic congestion in the capital," he said.

He said it now took three hours for a bus to traverse the Bekasi to Kalideres route, three times longer than five years ago.

With the introduction of the shorter routes, he said, the agency would no longer tolerate bus crews stopping in mid-route and turning around to increase their passenger load.

It has long been common for bus crews to dump passengers before reaching the end of the route in order to avoid heavily congested areas or to increase their passenger loads. This is because most bus crews are paid a percentage of their daily takings.

"We will also ensure that air-conditioned buses stop only at designated bus shelters to shorten the intervals between buses so that passengers don't have to wait too long," Rustam added.

New bus routes

Name/number of Bus Old route New route

P125 Hiba Utama (11 buses) Tanjung Priok-Blok M Tanjung Priok-Pasar Baru PPD Regular 10 (12 buses) Blok M-Senen Lebak Bulus-Manggarai SteadySafe 939 (6 buses) Blok M-Grogol Blok M-Veteran PPD PAC 10 (24 buses) Kampung Rambutan-Kota Kampung Rambutan-Senayan PPD PAC 15 (10 buses) Depok-Kota Depok-Karet PPD PAC 17 (18 buses) Bekasi-Kota Bekasi-Velbak SteadySafe PAC22 (9 buses) Lebak Bulus-Senen Lebak Bulus-Tebet Rail Station Mayasari P51 (10 buses) Bekasi-Kota Bekasi-Velbak SteadySafe PAC58 (4 buses) Grogol-Ciledug Kampung Melayu-Tangerang Mayasari P18B (8 buses) Pasar Baru-Ciputat Ciputat-Karet PPD P42 (13 buses) Blok M-Senen Lebak Bulus-Manggarai

Source: City Transportation Agency