A Transjakarta down: Workers guard a burned Transjakarta bus while passersby watch from afar. The bus, traveling between Kampung Melayu in East Jakarta, and Ancol in North Jakarta, burned while running on Jl. Kramat Raya last month. No passengers or crew were hurt in the incident. Antara/Ujang Zaelani
Compliments and positive remarks may be the icing on Transjakarta’s cake for its sixth birthday, which falls Friday.
However, within a few bus rides, The Jakarta Post found that passengers of the Transjakarta fleet were quick to pair their birthday wishes with criticism of the transportation service.
As the bus cruised, crawled and jolted due to sudden braking, the Post listened to what passengers had to say about Transjakarta:
“I wish Transjakarta would add more buses to its fleet.
“I often have to wait for a long time in certain shelters, such as the one in Senen, Central Jakarta.
Passengers also crowd the shelter,” Fransiska, a student at a university in Salemba, Central Jakarta, said.
“There are several vending machines in certain shelters, but since they are manually operated, the machine can’t be used when the operator is taking a break.
“I wonder why they don’t have a more efficient operation method,” she said.
“In the future, I hope Transjakarta will build toilets in its shelters, that would be more practical,” Rianto, who works in a hotel in North Jakarta, said.
Rianto said that since he started using Transjakarta buses in August last year, he appreciated its service between his home in Kalisari, East Jakarta, and his office.
“May Transjakarta progress further this year,” he said.
“Happy birthday, Transjakarta,” Agus Setiawan, who works at a computer casing producing company in Teluk Gong, North Jakarta, said.
After congratulating, he said greater discipline was needed for buses to run more smoothly.
“The government should apply more rigid measures to manage traffic congestion because private vehicles use Transjakarta lanes,” he said.
Mario Van Basten, who often uses the Transjakarta bus, said the buses needed higher security measures.
“My friend told me about pickpockets who take advantage of packed buses during rush hour,”
he said.
Mario said that he uses Transjakarta services around three times a week.
“I was previously apprehensive about using it because I thought it was expensive, but then I found it pocket-friendly,” he said.
Long wait: Hundreds of passengers queue on the bridge to Transjakarta’s shelter in South Jakarta. They waited to get their turn going to Ragunan Zoo during holiday season in the city. JP/Wendra Ajistyatama
“I hope Transjakarta refurbishes its facilities.
“The buses in corridor 2 need that,” Febryani, who has just graduated from college, said.
“The buses in corridor 1 [Kota, West Jakarta — Blok M, South Jakarta] may be nicer because passengers tend to be nicer,” she added, lamenting the condition of the buses in corridor 2, which spans from Pulogadung, East Jakarta, to Harmoni, Central Jakarta.
Febryani said that she relied on Transjakarta buses for long journeys.
“But for short distances angkot [public minivans] are better,” she said.
Romi Darlan, a waiter in North Jakarta, said that Transjakarta helped cut his traveling time to and from his workplace.
“If I use regular buses, it takes over an hour,” he said.
But despite Transjakarta’s faster travel time, he found the buses were unreliable.
“I wish they were more punctual,” Romi said.
“I heard there would be a corridor linking Bekasi area to Kalideres area [West Jakarta].
“I hope this is deployed,” David Mandang, a resident of Pulo Gebang, East Jakarta, said.
David has been using the Transjakarta bus to get to his workplace in Grogol, West Jakarta, for two years.
“I also wish reckless drivers were more careful. Sometimes they drive too fast, especially after 7 p.m. or early in the morning.
“Standing passengers lose balance easily,” he said.
Yusri Masrahati, who works as a marketing officer in a medical company, said that she prefers using Transjakarta services to the office motorcycle when she run errands for her company.
“I use Transjakarta two or three times a week to hospitals,” she said.
The buses do not service between her work and house in Tangerang, though, she said.
“I wish there was a service to Tangerang.”
She added that sometimes Trans-jakarta routes and corridors confuse her.
“I ask the officer at the entrance gate about how to get to one place and then ask the officer on the bus,” Yusri said.
“Sometimes I get different answers.”
Farsidah, who used to rely on Transjakarta to travel from her workplace in Sudirman, said that buses were not women-friendly.
“Shelter stairways are hazardous for women wearing high heels.
“The handles are sometimes too high to reach, or women carrying bags can’t grip them,” she said.
Farsidah added that the supporting facilities, such as shelters, for Transjakarta buses, had no disabled facilities.
Criticism also dominated the Transjakarta community web page, suaratransjakarta.org.
Many complained about the lack of buses that forced passengers to wait for long periods of time in
the heat.
Also due to bus shortage, many passengers push others when buses finally arrive at bus stops. (dis)
annoying passengers behaviors according to suara transjakarta
• Those who stand near the door during the journey make it difficult to enter and exit the bus.
• Passengers who insist on entering a packed bus in spite of the driver’s assistants warning.
• Passengers who cut the queue in various ways.
• Those who push others when a bus arrives.
• Passengers who have reached the front of the queue but refuse to alight the bus because it is crowded and no seat is available. They usually block other passengers’ access to the bus.
• Passengers who sexually harass, usually by invading personal space.
Transjakarta: THE JOURNEY THUS FAR
January 2004
The soft launching of corridor I (Blok M. South Jakarta - Jakarta Kota, West Jakarta)
February 2004
Transjakarta buses run commercially along corridor I.
January 2006
The opening of corridor II (Pulogadung, East Jakarta - Harmoni, Central Jakarta).
The opening of corridor III (Kalideres, West Jakarta - Harmoni, Central Jakarta).
January 2007
The opening of corridor IV (Pulogadung, East Jakarta - Dukuh Atas, Central Jakarta).
The opening of corridor V (Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta - Ancol, North Jakarta).
The opening of corridor VI (Ragunan, South Jakarta - Kuningan, South Jakarta).
The opening of corridor VII (Kampung Rambutan, East Jakarta - Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta).
February 2007
Former head of the Jakarta Transportation Agency Rustam Effendi Sidabutar sentenced to three years in prison for embezzling fund used to procure buses for the Transjakarta fleet.
May 2007
A Transjakarta bus burst into flames in Pulogadung hangar.
2008
The initially planned opening of corridor IX (Pinang Ranti, East Jakarta - Pluit, North Jakarta).
February 2008
A Transjakarta bus burst into flames in Tugu Tani area, Central Jakarta.
February 2009
The opening of corridor VII (Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta - Harmoni, Central Jakarta).
December 2009
A Transjakarta bus burst into flames on Jl. Kramat Raya, Central Jakarta.
October 2010
The planned opening of corridor IX.
The planned opening of corridor X (Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta - Cililitan, East Jakarta).
Source: suaratransjakarta.org
