TheJakartaPost

Please Update your browser

Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.

Jakarta Post

Ticket scalpers still have window open at station

Ticket scalpers continue operating despite the implementation of online reservation services, due to loopholes in the new ticketing system that state-owned railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) claimed was an effective way to crack down on scalping practices at stations

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
Sat, June 1, 2013

Share This Article

Change Size

Ticket scalpers still have window open at station

T

icket scalpers continue operating despite the implementation of online reservation services, due to loopholes in the new ticketing system that state-owned railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) claimed was an effective way to crack down on scalping practices at stations.

Ticket scalpers at the Senen railway station in Central Jakarta, for example, openly offered tickets to commuters wanting to purchase economy and business-class tickets to Surabaya and Malang, both in East Java, and Semarang in Central Java in front of the ticket booth.

'€œTickets to Surabaya, Malang and Semarang are Rp 200,000 (US$20.42),'€ said ticket scalper Zaki.

The original price of one ticket for any of those destinations at the ticket booth is Rp 110,000.

Zaki told The Jakarta Post that he had a lot of tickets that he purchased online on previous days.

'€œTo buy multiple tickets, I borrow identity cards from relatives and friends. I resell the tickets when the tickets are sold out,'€ he said.

According to Zaki, even though tickets have travelers'€™ names printed on them, he does not worry about changing the existing names because KAI provides a service that enables customers to make corrections to names and addresses if incorrectly written when purchased online.

'€œWhat customers need to do, is give me their IDs, then I change the names on the tickets into their names. The name-changing service costs 25 percent of the ticket price,'€ he said.

Twenty-five-year-old Rahman from Malang, who bought a ticket to Surabaya from Zaki, said that he went to the ticket booth but was told the tickets were sold out.

'€œI was surprised how the ticket scalper could sell me a ticket while the officer said all tickets were sold out,'€ Rahman said.

When asked about the illegal practice, Sukendar Mulya, KAI spokesman for the regional office overseeing Banten, West Java and Jakarta, stated that KAI would soon investigate scalping practices at Senen railway station.

'€œWe did not anticipate that scalpers could continue the illicit practice after the online system was implemented last August. We will take strong measures against them,'€ he told the Post.

He said that the system served ID holders but could not detect anyone who purchased multiple tickets with different IDs.

He also denied that scalpers '€œworked'€ with station officials.

'€œIf one person comes many times to change names on the tickets, then the officers will recognize him or her. So far, people who come to change their names do not look suspicious to officers,'€ Sukendar said. (hrl)

{

Your Opinion Matters

Share your experiences, suggestions, and any issues you've encountered on The Jakarta Post. We're here to listen.

Enter at least 30 characters
0 / 30

Thank You

Thank you for sharing your thoughts. We appreciate your feedback.