S

tate railway company PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) says it will implement electronic ticketing and distance-based fares at 63 stations in Greater Jakarta on June 1.

Company spokesperson Sukendar Mulya told The Jakarta Post on Monday that distance-based fares would reduce the amount of money paid by commuters.

KAI Commuter Jabodetabek (KCJ) spokeswoman Eva Chairunnisa said that the system would require straphangers to pay according to how many stations they passed on their trips.

'For the first five stations, commuters will just pay the minimum fare, Rp 3,000 [31 US cents]. Another three stations, they just need to add Rp 1,000,' Eva said, adding that the maximum price of a ticket under the new system would be fixed at Rp 9,000.

The spokeswoman said that the e-ticketing system was designed to work in tandem with distance-based fares.

'The price of the ticket that has to be paid by a commuter will be calculated automatically by a system that has been set by the operators,' she said.

Eva added that every time commuters used their cards to enter the platform, a machine would automatically deduct Rp 3,000 from the balance of the cards.

'If the commuter travels for more than five stations, then that will be deducted automatically when passengers use their cards to get through the gate at their destination stations,' Eva said, adding that distance-based fares would only apply for e-ticketing passengers.

According to Eva, the firm expected that the new fare system would prompt more people to use trains as an alternative mode of transportation to privately owned vehicles.

'I hope the new system will boost the number of commuters and therefore reduce the number of traffic jams on the road,' she said.

Separately, the chairman of the Association of Train Passengers (Aspeka), Ahmad Safrudin, applauded the move to implement e-tickets and distance-based fares.

'The policy on the distance-based fares can benefit the people who commute short distances who always have to pay the [current] maximum price of Rp 8,000, even though they just travel one or two stations,' Ahmad said on Monday as quoted by kompas.com.

'With the current ticketing system, whether passengers go to one or two stations, they have to pay the same amount as those who travel more than ten stations,' he added.

However, Ahmad said that it would be better if KAI determined ticket prices according to the number of kilometers travelled and not the number of stations passed.

'If the price is determined according to the number of kilometers, electric trains will be able to compete with other form of public transportation in the city,' Ahmad said. (hrl)