Jakarta Transportation Cooperatives (Kopaja) is gearing up to join city-owned bus operator PT Transportasi Jakarta (Transjakarta) as part of the administration'€™s attempt to revitalize public transportation.

Kopaja has thus far procured as many as 200 new minibuses, each of which costs about Rp 550 million (US$41,341). Each bus can carry up to 40 passengers and is air-conditioned. They are equipped with three doors; one on the same level as Transjakarta bus stops and two at street level, similar to Kopaja'€™s existing air-conditioned buses.

Kopaja chairman Nanang Basuki said the buses would be the first to be managed under Transjakarta. In total, he said, Kopaja had 1,470 buses, including 120 air-conditioned buses. '€œUltimately, we will change all our buses into air-conditioned buses in order to join Transjakarta,'€ Nanang said after a meeting at City Hall on Wednesday.

He went on to say that there were roughly 600 bus owners under Kopaja, all of whom had agreed to operate under Transjakarta.

'€œOperating under Transjakarta is very beneficial for bus owners because we'€™re paid per kilometer traveled by our buses. Transjakarta will also be paying our drivers'€™ salaries,'€ Nanang said.

Kopaja will be the first public transportation company to operate under Transjakarta.

The city is a home to a variety of public transportation modes, from Mikrolet and KWK minivans to Kopaja and Metro Mini minibuses, among others. Currently, most types of public transportation in Jakarta are owned privately by hundreds of individuals and small firms who hire drivers.

The drivers are required to pay a setoran (set fee) to the operators each day and may take home the money they make after the minimum amount is fulfilled. As a result, many drivers tend to wait for passengers and drive recklessly, causing traffic congestion and frequent accidents.

The city'€™s public transportation revitalization program aims to erase the setoran system by having Transjakarta pay bus owners per kilometer traveled.

Further, Transjakarta president director ANS Kosasih said he was optimistic that Kopaja would be able to operate under Transjakarta management starting July. He said the firm and the city administration were currently discussing the kilometer tariff.

Under the new system, Kopaja passengers will make payments electronically by swiping a card on an electronic data capture (EDC) device provided by Transjakarta.

Kopaja'€™s P20 route from Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta, to Senen, Central Jakarta, would be the first route managed under Transjakarta, he said. Another route would be announced soon. '€œDrivers must be certified under LSP-LLAJ [Professional Certification Institution for Traffic and Land Transportation]. They will also undergo psychological and health tests,'€ Kosasih added.

Kosasih went on to say that Transjakarta in cooperation with the Indonesia Infrastructure Initiative (IndII) was set to gradually change Kopaja'€™s existing routes to adjust to residents'€™ needs.

'€œWe will make changes to Kopaja'€™s existing routes to adapt to the needs of the passengers. A number of routes will have minor changes while others will be completely overhauled. Transjakarta and the city administration will also develop bus stops and rehabilitate existing bus stops, so Kopaja drivers should not stop in the middle of the street,'€ he said.

Jakarta Governor Basuki '€œAhok'€ Tjahaja Purnama said he aimed for all public transportation to be integrated under Transjakarta.

'€œBy the end of 2016, all Kopaja routes must be managed under Transjakarta. After Kopaja, we are targeting the Metro Minis,'€ he said.

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