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Jakarta to make giant leap in 2019 with MRT, LRT, ERP
Old and new: A bajaj (three-wheeled motorized vehicle) is driven past the Transjakarta Centrale Stichting Wederopbouw (CSW) shuttle station in Jakarta on Thursday
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ld and new: A bajaj (three-wheeled motorized vehicle) is driven past the Transjakarta Centrale Stichting Wederopbouw (CSW) shuttle station in Jakarta on Thursday. The station is expected to resume operation early next year when the planned lift construction is completed. It will be integrated with Sisingamangaraja MRT station.(JP/Dhoni Setiawan)
Jakarta is set to open the newest chapter in its public transportation with the MRT and light rapid transit (LRT) to begin operations next year alongside the implementation of the electronic road pricing (ERP) system. The three will serve as the foundation of the city’s transportation policy.
The MRT is to begin operations in March 2019, with the first corridor to run from the depot and station in Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta, to the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle, serving 13 stations.
The city’s first LRT corridor is to run from Kelapa Gading in North Jakarta to the Jakarta International Velodrome in Rawamangun, East Jakarta. The project is being built by the city-owned PT Jakarta Propertindo and will serve six stations when it begins operations in January.
State-owned PT Adhi Karya Tbk is still working on the LRT lines from Cawang to Cibubur, both in East Jakarta, Cawang to Dukuh Atas in Central Jakarta and Cawang to East Bekasi in West Java.
The head of the Greater Jakarta Transportation Agency (BPTJ), Bambang Prihartono, said the agency was currently pushing authorities to integrate all modes of transportation to support the MRT and LRT.
“When the MRT begins operation, the LRT will follow as it will serve as a feeder of the MRT, which will be the backbone [of the city’s public transportation network],” he told reporters on Friday.
Bambang said that the MRT, LRT and other modes of transportation must be properly integrated, adding that older modes of transportation would need to be rerouted to avoid overlapping with the new MRT and LRT services.
He said smaller modes of transportation should serve as the first/last mile public transportation providers, connecting residential areas with the stations.
In addition to the physical integration of public transportation, Bambang said all ticketing systems needed to be integrated.
He said the BPTJ was currently working on making sure all modes of public transportation used the same e-money ticketing system.
Bambang said the central bank was currently auditing the ticketing system proposed by the Transportation Ministry, before implementing the system, with a launch planned for this December.
The ERP system is also expected to be implemented in 2019, as the odd-even policy — although effective in reducing congestion — is considered by the BPTJ to be only a short-term solution.
The ERP system comprises three zones or “rings”. The first ring would include Jl. Sudirman and Jl. MH Thamrin and the second ring would encompass Jakarta’s arterial roads. These two rings are to be managed by the Jakarta administration, while the third ring, which would encompass the toll roads in Greater Jakarta is to be managed directly by the BPTJ.
The ERP rates are to be determined on a progressive scale, with rates during rush hour higher than off-peak hours.
However, as the ERP’s implementation has been delayed numerous times, the odd-even policy, which after the Asian Para Games was extended until the end of 2018, might continue to be needed.
Furthermore, even with the addition of the MRT and LRT, experts say that other modes of transportation would be just as important.
The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) Indonesia director Yoga Adi Winarto said the key to successful public transportation in Jakarta was the existing Transjakarta bus system, which according to ITDP, covered 60 percent of the city, far more than the 14-km-long MRT phase one corridor from Lebak Bulus to the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle.
“From Blok M to HI [Hotel Indonesia], it [MRT] does not necessarily expand the network, it only adds to [commuter] capacity,” he said.
Yoga said that Jakartans would continue to rely on Transjakarta even with the addition of the MRT, adding that the administration should focus on transportation integration, through the Jak Lingko program.
Yoga said the commuter line would also be important. In 2017, Transjakarta served 144.7 million passengers, while the PT Kereta Commuter Indonesia-operated commuter line served 315.8 million passengers.
Meanwhile, the MRT’s phase one corridor is expected to carry up to 130,000 commuters daily by the end of 2019.
University of Indonesia (UI) transportation expert Ellen Tangkudung said that the opening of the MRT and LRT would be a big step forward for the city’s public transportation as they would greatly expand the capacity of the city’s public transportation system.
“However, this will not be possible without integration. The MRT and LRT must be supported by feeders,” Ellen told the Post.
