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Whoosh starts commercial operations amid Jokowi, Xi meeting
Commercial operations for the high-speed rail (HSR) service between Jakarta and Bandung kicked off on Tuesday with a launch ceremony for the Indonesian-Chinese project coinciding with Jokowi’s visit to the Belt and Road Summit in Beijing.
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A train for the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail service called 'Whoosh' is seen during the service's inauguration at Halim Station in Jakarta on Oct. 2, 2023. (AFP/Bay Ismoyo)
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ommercial operations for the high-speed rail (HSR) service between Jakarta and Bandung kicked off on Tuesday with a launch ceremony that coincided with Jokowi’s visit to the Belt and Road Summit in Beijing.
After an initial period of free trials beginning early this month, PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC), the train operator, now charges passengers for the service, dubbed Whoosh, although a promotional fare of Rp 150,000 for a one-way ticket will apply until the end of November.
After that, the Indonesian-Chinese consortium is expected to hike prices, with the exact level to be determined by customer demand and other considerations.
"Some commercial [regular] trains and planes in Indonesia implement dynamic pricing, right? In the off season, the price will drop, and it will increase again during holiday seasons or weekends. It depends on the company's strategy," KCIC president director Dwiyana Slamet Riyadi told reporters on Tuesday.
The commercial opening took place on the day of a bilateral meeting between President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing.
With trains running at operational speeds of up to 350 kilometers per hour, the 142-kilometer-long railway service is one of the flagship projects of China's Belt and Road Initiative in Indonesia. The project was largely funded by loans from China.
According to interim Coordinating Maritime Affairs and Investment Minister Erick Thohir, one topic to be discussed during the meeting is the extension of the Whoosh service to Surabaya, which would extend the route by 700 kilometers.
