The government has decided to use moving block signaling -- a signaling system in which the blocks, or sections of track, are defined in real time by computers as protected zones around each train – for the Greater Jakarta light rail transit (LRT).

With a moving block system, trains can transport more passengers than when a fixed block system is used, said Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi.

Budi said that by using moving block signaling, the LRT could transport up to 750,000 passengers per day while with fixed block it would only be able to transport 500,000.

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“We want the system that offers a shorter headway. [With moving block], headway can be shortened to one minute,” said Budi as reported by kompas.com on Wednesday after attending a meeting to discuss the LRT project with Maritime Coordinating Minister Luhut Pandjaitan in Jakarta on Wednesday.

The cost of moving block signaling for the LRT project will be Rp 200 billion (US$14.96 million) to Rp 300 billion, Budi added.

Seventeen percent of the Greater Jakarta LRT has been developed to date. The system will have three three lines, namely Cawang-Cibubur, Cawang-Bekasi Timur and Cawang-Kuningan-Dukuh Atas. (bbn)