Jakartass Home thoughts from abroad. Alien thoughts from home.

Change Your World is an annual campaign that takes place across the UK each June. Run by the charity, Sustrans, it encourages everyone to walk, cycle or take public transport more often because collectively it will add up to make a big difference – healthier journeys, cleaner air* and quieter streets.

Once you’ve made your pledge you’ll also be able to tell Government they must act too – to invest more in making it easier for everyone to travel in ways that are good for our health and the environment.

OK, that's the UK sorted.

But Jakarta?

The Busway authority is working with Jakarta's commuter train overlords to introduce a ‘JakCard’ system . Apparently it's debit card which will enable commuters to transit between selected train stations and busway stops. It seems overly complicated in conception and still overlooks the fact that to get from the Sudirman station on the main road through Jakarta's business district onto the busway system involves a hike in either direction of at least half a kilometre.

At least that particular pavement (Am. sidewalk) is in fairly reasonable condition. In general though, pedestrians may like to know that City Hall agrees that the condition of Jakarta's pavements is worrisome. They devote a page to this – Kondisi trotoar di DKI mengkhawatirkan – without suggesting that they know how to deal with it.

So, as ever, it's up to the commuter communities to organise and hopefully to join forces in time for next year's campaign to Change Our World.

This is a short list of groups who offer hope through their forums (generally in Indonesian).
- Rujak.org
- Car sharing
- Bike To Work
- Train commuters

And I'll stick to taxis and buses depending on when and where (and why) I go.
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*Jakarta is in the top ten of the world's most polluted cities, but car-free days clear the air.

I like travelling at ground level, especially by train or boat. They may be slow but they offer the freedom to observe the changing environment, whether natural, farmed or urban, and to contemplate one's passage through life.

Trains

Some six years ago, I wrote,  "Jakartass likes trains; one of the world’s great journeys is from Jakarta to Bandung. Reserve a window on the right and meditate as the gorgeous ever green scenery, passing over deep gorges, through kampungs and rice fields."

Sad to relate then that one of the two "legendary trains" to Bandung, the Parahyangan, has been cancelled because it was suffering financial losses due to a sharp decline in passenger numbers.

But why is this? It's not as if Bandung has fewer visitors.

PK KAI’s vice president of passenger transportation Husein Nurrony said the company was forced to take the decision after an evaluation showed it had suffered losses of Rp.36 billion last year. He blamed the losses on the Cikampek-Purwakarta-Padalarang (Cipularang) turn pike, which has shortened the trip from Jakarta to Bandung from five hours to 2.5 hours.

Ah, cars. The railway company does still have the Argo Express, but the Parahyangan was much cheaper and catered for those with lower incomes.

And there will be yet more turn pikes (sic) – toll roads (jalan tol) to the rest of us – managed by private companies, probably still tainted with Suharto money.

As reported last week, seven provinces in Java and Bali have urged the government to strengthen its commitment to complete the Trans Java and Southern Java highway projects to maintain and improve contributions to the gross regional product.

There are mixed messages emanating from the government. On the one hand it tries to portray itself as being at the forefront of tackling environmental issues, and on the other we see more of the same old, same old.

As an editorial in the Post says, there is a national, misguided penchant for sacrificing mass transportation for private transport, leaving fewer options for those seeking to save on transport costs.

Under a president who pledged “prosperity, democracy and justice” the government still has little to show in terms of transportation improvements, while passengers deal with crowded filthy trains, wait in eternity for TransJakarta buses, or go back to using air-conditioned cars.

It is taking forever for our politicians to learn that feeling part of a modern nation means being able, in part, to be a dignified public transport passenger.

However, it does appear that at least one of his ministers has grasped part of that message. At the launch of a new train service, the Malabar train serving the Malang-Bandung route (using the rolling stock of the Parahyangan), State-Owned Enterprises Minister Mustafa Abubakar contributed (attributed?) the company’s low performance to its social and commercial missions.

He said, “Since there’s plenty of public service obligation, the company serves its social mission well."

Mustafa said the subsidy was provided each year in the state budget.

However, he urged PT Kereta Api to develop new routes to halt losses and subsidy from the government. “This year, the subsidy for economy-class train passengers amounted to Rp.535 billion [US$59.4 million].”

Which is much less that the amount allegedly embezzled by tax officers!

Elsewhere, however, there is some good news with the announcement that PT Kereta Api plans to revitalize all historic train routes in West Sumatra that connect the province with neighboring Riau. The routes were abandoned following Japan’s retreat from the region at the end of World War II. Many of the tracks now serve as dwellings though others still function to transport both passengers and freight.

PT Kereta Api director Yahya Ombara said during a press conference in Padang last Sunday that the revitalization project was part of the Trans Sumatra grand design.

Oh dear, more grandstanding, yet I really do hope to live long enough to travel the length of the line. The road route from Padang to Bukittinggi runs parallel to what remains of the tracks in places and the scenery in places is quite stunning as it passes through still forested sections.

And boats

The state-owned ferry port company PT Indonesia Ferry operates around 98 ships and ferries and manages 34 ports across Indonesia.

The company's manager, Ospar Silaban, said the firm had gradually upgraded all facilities including ferry cabins to bring them up to air travel standards, providing passengers with a comfortable traveling experience.

He added that two of its 27 ferries – Prathita and Mutis – already had VIP rooms, karaoke facilities, restaurants, children playgrounds, etc.

Karaoke? Comfortable? I'm more interested in legroom, something the economy class in planes generally lack, but good news all the same.

And no planes?

Gunung Baru, in West Nusa Tenggara, one of the c.76 active volcanoes in Indonesia, is currently erupting, and Eyjafjallajökull hasn't stopped yet. Ireland had to call a halt to flights this week as the ash-cloud shifted over the country's skies.

The lesson for Indonesia's powers-that-be is that they are powerless in the face of Mother Nature.

So get real guys. Develop mass public transport: buses for short distances and trains or boats for longer ones.

Serve the people, not yourselves.
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After I'd written much of this post I came across Slow Travel, which I've now added to my list of favourite blogs (see page above).

Ed Gillespie, a communications executive in London, is the author and stopped flying for vacation a few years ago, partly for environmental reasons but mostly because he didn’t enjoy it. In an interview for the Wall Street Journal, he describes 'slow travel' as “reveling in the landscape, culture, people and language rather than just passing over it all in an aluminum sausage. It’s a much richer experience.”

Here hear?

Well, maybe not here as the under-funded KAI (Kereta Api Indonesia = Indonesia Railways) has problems in maintaining its rail network and rolling stock. Accidents are not infrequent.

But there is something romantic about train journeys, if Murder On The Orient Express can be called a romance. Paul Theroux, who made his name from The Great Railway Bazaar, published in 1977, about a circular ride from London via Iran, India, south-east Asia, Japan and Russia, can be called a great romantic.

Theroux is unimpressed by many of the destinations: the tombs of Cain and Abel in India are almost accused of being fakes, Teheran has "little interest" and Afghanistan is "a nuisance". But this inconvenience is made up for by the romance of the trains. It starts with the names: "The Khyber Mail to Lahore Junction", "The Mandalay Express", "The Ozora Big Sky Limited Express to Sapporo", and, of course "The Trans-Siberian Express".

Jakartass likes trains; one of the world's great journeys is from Jakarta to Bandung. Reserve a window on the right and meditate as the gorgeous ever green scenery, passing over deep drops, through kampungs and rice fields.

Mainly because I hate traffic jams, I have been known to catch cattle class from my local station up to Kota in North Jakarta. For a description of how my life has narrowly stayed on the rails, read my archives in sequence, here, here and here.

The local trains are electric and judging from their appearance they are fifty years old at least, except for the secondhand Chinese ones which are express and don't stop at my station any way. Actually I've just discovered the rolling stock only (?) dates from 1976.

(Update May 2010. There is new rolling stock, meaning second-hand, imported from Japan. )

It can be said, that the development of Jakarta as a metropolitan city … started (in) 1925, when the development of the electric railway line as the Jakarta circle line was started by the Dutch Colonial Government of the time.

This electric railway line heralded a new era of environmentally friendly mass transportation system, which (was) among the most advanced transportation system in Asia at that time.

It would be really nice if Indonesia's rail network was still the most advanced transportation system in Asia. If it were, there wouldn't be the need to develop busways or a monorail system in parallel with an existing rail route. Jakarta residents may like to know that there are infrequent trains between Manggarai and Tanah Abang.*

Manggarai is the major rail junction in Jakarta, which may not be saying much. However, it retains vestiges of its importance with Dutch buildings and sidings where inter-city express carriages are parked when not going somewhere. And it is here that one of the original electric locomotives can still be seen, the type built by Werkspoor-Heemaf. This locomotive even has a nickname: 'Bon-Bon', due to its boxy shape and attractive color, which resembles chocolate confectionary package.

Now what could be more romantic than naming a train engine after a chocolate box?

Eh? Oh.

Whatever, there is a piece of good news in today's Jakarta Post – Bon-Bon is getting a makeover.

Last Saturday afternoon, 29-year-old Paulus Soni Gumilang donned his weekend uniform: shorts, a loose T-shirt, a white bandanna and goggles. Instead of heading to hang-out places like other Jakartans, the copywriter went to state train operator PT KAI's rail yard, Balai Yasa, in South Jakarta's Manggarai to clean up Lok Bon Bon with eight of his friends.

Since 1976, the majority of the electric locomotives had disappeared, as they were scrapped. Only the Werkspoor-Heemaf 3202, which was renumbered as 202, (remains), still derelict at Manggarai Workshop, Jakarta. This locomotive is simply forgotten, and neglected in poor condition. A stark contrast, compared to its meritorious operational days, where it hauled its faithful customers to their ultimate destination.

With members in Semarang, Bandung, Yogyakarta and Jakarta, the Indonesian Railway Preservation Society (IRPS) tries to collect and preserve all forms of available documentation of the transportation service. However, preserving historical data and artifacts like Bon Bon is not easy.

PT KAI has shown support for the effort by planning to transport the historical locomotive to West Jakarta's Kota station and make it into a monument, the state train operator's Jakarta office spokesman Akhmad Sujadi said.

"We have calculated that it would cost around Rp 60 million to repair Bon Bon and take it to Kota station. That excludes the cost of making it into a monument," explained Nova.

Spokesman Sujadi said that to display the locomotive as well as set up a small historical railway library at Kota station would require a fund of up to Rp 200 million. IRPS is currently working with PT KAI and the Jakarta Cultural and Museum Agency to implement the plan.

Respect for history? Great isn't it, though I'm surprised that there isn't a plan to plonk Bon-Bon in the atrium of the latest mall.

*The next day the Jakarta Post published a profile of the commuters who use this not-so-famous rail route. They've set up the Greater Jakarta railway passengers forum – KRLMania – and a website (in Indonesian).

Having waited for up to half an hour for my conveyance to town ~ see my post on – July 15th – it is with keen interest that I view the arriving train.

Inevitably at that time of the morning there are youths on the roof, a risky affair given that these trains are electric with an overhead power supply. This means that the sides are bulging with bodies and the insides are like the proverbial can of sardines. But, no worries think I, needs must. Anyway, where I embark loads of folk disembark. Also, that glimmer of intelligence I have in the early hours (if 10am can be called that) means that I have chosen a section of the train with the least internal mobility.

There are 8 carriages in 2 units of 4. Therefore, in the middle at the ends of each unit, there are the driver's cabs which are, generally, sealed off from the hoi polloi. The cabs are obviously the best places to be, but I have yet to be invited to join the dozen or so chosen ones. Instead, I attempt to enter through the double doors immediately behind.

Cattle class is variable. Sometimes I am delighted to see a shiny blue one arriving. These are likely to have overhead fans that still work. Silver trains are second best; it is a given that the double sliding doors are there for decorative purposes. They are either permanently open or jammed half shut. The latter situation does make it harder for the cling-ons, who are those who ride the sides of the train using their extra-strength fingernails to prevent sudden ejection.

If I see an orange train arriving I can expect something a little more down-market. There will be graffiti scrawls inside and out, no operative fans, missing lights and windows and a muggier atmosphere which is the result of having conveyed innumerably more sweaty bodies.

In none of these trains can I expect a seat. These were taken way down the line, probably in Bogor. The rest of us have to find a handrail or, in the blue trains, a luggage rack to grasp. This is fine by me as I am somewhat taller and have a longer reach. If the overhead fans aren't working it's because they have been grabbed too often during lurches. The handrails may similarly have come unattached through constant use.

I am prepared for this. My small backpack is on my front, I have my handkerchief-sized floor space, I am inside near the doors so I can attract the breeze as we rattle along and I am ready to quietly observe my fellow passengers as they observe me, the only westerner crazy enough to share their daily commute.

For reasons of both time and money, I commute by economy class train from my semi-suburban home to the office where I’m tapping this out. I suspect that few of my readers here will have been through this experience, preferring the air-conditioned comforts of private cars or taxis as I used to do. For me, needs must.

Getting on the platform is literally the first hurdle. The sidewalks and footpath up to the ticket office are invariably blocked by ojeks (motorcycle taxis), their drivers and meals-on-wheels vendors. Once the ticket to town ~ Rp.1,000 (= 8p) ~ has been purchased, I try to find somewhere to sit and wait. This is difficult as most of the benches, made from old rails, are occupied by refreshment stalls, vendors of shoes, pens, eyeglasses, or scavengers having a morning kip.

This is a busy station in terms of genuine passengers but freedom of movement is in short supply for us and, unfortunately, the train frequency does not seem to have increased in line with Jakarta’s population growth.

So I usually have time to sit and contemplate life on the opposite platform. This is not a peaceful muse as either Iwan Fals, Indonesia’s Bruce Springsteen, or dangdut, the hybrid Bollywood / Arabic music is blasted out from the five stalls selling pirated CDs. Not that I’m grumbling; one of the stalls sells DVDs of exceptional quality in terms of the unlikely films which make their way here.

This platform is also my favourite market. I pay regular weekend visits to buy cheap energy-saver light bulbs, taps and the various bits and bobs which have a very short half-life in these tropical climes. If there is a ticket collector/inspector on duty, a fairly rare occurrence, I tell him that I’m just shopping and he grants access.

During the longer waits there is cross-traffic between the platforms. The shorter than me Indonesians show great agility in getting a leg up given that the platforms are at least chest-high. Why there is the cross-traffic I’m never quite sure. Very occasionally its to have a chat with an acquaintance, but most seem to prefer a shouted sentence or two across the divide.

For some, the tracks are a short cut between their kampungs and the level crossing which serves as the main entrance. For most, the tracks are a convenient place to sweep the detritus away from the stalls or to dump plastic bags and drinks cups. Every so often a scavenger will emerge from his or her nap and collect what is deemed to have value through recycling.

Ah, there comes my train. I’m now sufficiently in tune with my environment to ignore the hordes of rooftop passengers, which denote an even more stoical experience ahead.

My morning training has, so far, gone well.

I have a confession to make. I recently threw a man off the Bogor to Kota train.

It had already arrived at Kota station so was my action OK? You judge, and feel free to write with your comments, supportive, derogatory or anecdotal. I may even reply.

I was with my 7 year old going to Mangga Dua because the train saves both time and taxi fares, although you have to be careful of pickpockets and hawkers of trinkets and phlegm. As with nearly all mass transport conveyances in Indonesia, the operative word is mass. Standing is the norm for pregnant women, physically handicapped folk and anyone who isn’t able-bodied. Able, that is, to grab a seat.

So, we arrived at Kota station and with relief joined the exiting throng only to find ourselves being pushed back in by a throng wishing to bugger off to Bogor and points in-between. So, in order to create space for my nipper, I pushed a respectably dressed man in his late 20′s back on to the platform and loudly suggested that he should have bought a brain when he bought his ticket. He wasn’t happy but others were, maybe because now he would not be able to grab a seat.

It’s not just trains. Lifts are another bottleneck and who thanks you if you hold a door open to let others pass through? Is this endemic?

Unfortunately the answer seems to be yes. Apparently, queues ‘are no longer sacred in British culture’. At Kota, I was not a victim of ‘queue rage’ ~ a term coined by a Newcastle academic who spent four years queuing in order to produce his report. A bit excessive I would have thought. Even I’m not that patient.

There has to be a reason for what I believe is a lack of common courtesy. I’m not going to launch into a long socio-economic thesis here, but would merely like to draw your attention to one particular laundry gunge ad. A single man spends an inordinate amount of time seeking one item in a supermarket. He finds it and is happy until he sees the length of the checkout queue. No problem for this mighty man; he pushes in front of the line of ibus who then smile and coo as he displays his purchase of ….. Wings.

Now, that’s what I need. Give me wings and I too could avoid queues.