T

o accommodate PT Kereta Api Indonesia'€™s (KAI) plan to expand the capacity of its commuter-line fleet, KAI is extending and widening some platforms at Jakarta Kota station that might have an effect on one of the heritage buildings at the station, a signal house.

Spokesman for state-owned railway operator KAI'€™s Operation Region (Daop) 1, Agus Komarudin, said that KAI had recently received sets of longer commuter trains from Japan, forcing them to lengthen the platforms.

The current commuter trains consist of eight cars.

'€œFive platforms are being extended. Platforms 8, 9, 10 and 11 are finished, while work on platform number 12 is still ongoing,'€ he said.

To make way for the extension of platform 12, KAI has to demolish an old signal house that is also a protected heritage site.

The station has two signal houses, but only one will be affected by the platform expansion.

The house, built in 1929, is a building that was once used to observe train arrivals.

Jakarta Kota station is one of the oldest train stations in the country developed by the Dutch East Indies government and has been in operation since 1873.

The station, which is also known as Beos station, is one of the few stations in Indonesia that does not have railway line continuation, which means that the station is a train'€™s final destination.

Gubernatorial Decree No. 475/1993 stipulates that the station, which was designed by architect Frans Johan Louwrens Ghijels, falls into the category of a heritage site that should be protected. It is also protected by Law No. 11/2010 on cultural heritage.

Agus said the signal house was not in use on account of the development of railway technology.

According to Agus, the 3-meter widening of platform 12 would require 1.5 meters of the land on which the house stands, meaning that KAI would have to demolish the building. KAI, however, must await permission from the Jakarta Tourism and Culture Agency to
do so.

Agus said that in case the office did not issue the permit, KAI had prepared an alternative plan. '€œAlthough this would not be ideal, the platform would only be widened by 1.5 meters,'€ he added.

Jakarta Kota station deputy head Bolkiah said that the widening was needed to ensure the safety of passengers.

'€œThe railway of platform 12 is curved. It is dangerous for the train to run on such a railway,'€ he said. (ask)