KRL Train Resumes Normal Operations Beginning Monday Evening

After monitoring and evaluating the situation of passengers in the greater Jakarta area, PT Kereta Commuter Indonesia (KCL) decided to normalize the operation of the KRL commuter train starting on Monday evening.

KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI

Passengers board a Commuter Line train on Monday (23/3/2020) at Manggarai Station, South Jakarta. The number of passengers in Manggarai Station was still relatively normal on the first day of the work from home (WFH) policy, imposed under Jakarta Gubernatorial Appeal No. 6/2020 on Temporary Suspension of Office Activities to Prevent the Spread of Coronavirus (Covid-19).

JAKARTA, KOMPAS - PT Kereta Commuter Indonesia (KCI) decided to resume normal operations of the commuter train service (KRL) in the greater Jakarta area (Jabotabek) starting at 3 p.m. on Monday after observing the density of passengers earlier in the morning.

With the normalization of its schedule, KRL is providing a total of 991 trips per day from 4 a.m. to midnight at all 80 stations and all KRL routes in Jabotabek.

Also read : Pros and Cons of Operational Restrictions of Public Transportation

"Although the train services have been normalized, we urge passengers to work at home, except if activities are very important and urgent. The normalization of the KRL schedules should not be used for traveling for unimportant activities,” PT KCI vice president for corporate communications Anne Purba said in a press release made available to Kompas on Monday.

Public policy observer Agus Pambagio said that if the government did not compensate workers for lost income, public transportation would still be needed. "So, we should think first before issuing any policy," he said.

Also read : Curbing Virus Spread with Hygienic Transportation Modes

KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI

Passengers board the Commuter Line train on Monday (23/3/2020) at Manggarai Station, South Jakarta.

Without incentives from the government, any mode of public transportation would remain crowded, Agus said, adding that as a consequence, the social distancing policy imposed by the government would not be effective.

On Sunday (3/22/2020), PT KCI decreased service hours on all KRL routes to 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. starting on Monday morning. KCI offered only 713 KRL train trips.

However, on Monday evening, KCI said it would begin operating KRL trains with 10 or 12 cars to ensure that the trains would not be too crowded so that the social distancing policy could be still implemented .

Prevent the spread of COVID-19

In addition to normalizing the KRL service schedule, PT KCI has made various efforts to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. These efforts include cleaning the train intensively with disinfectants, checking the body temperatures of passengers and providing more than 2,000 bottle of hand sanitizer on trains and at stations.

KOMPAS/I GUSTI AGUNG BAGUS ANGGA PUTRA

Officers at Rawa Buntu Station of the national railway service (KRL) check the body temperature of passengers on Thursday (19/3/2020).

Furthermore, at several stations, hand washing facilities are available outside toilets for passengers to use before or after riding the train.

Social distancing is also encouraged within stations and in trains. Inside the station, PT KCI and state-owned train company KAI have drawn lines at counters, gates and before body temperature checks to keep people from getting too close.

Train officers also direct passengers to board less crowded cars first and encourage passengers to move out of crowded cars into emptier ones during the course of the trip.

In the past week, the number of KRL passengers has decreased by 50 to 60 percent from an average of 1 million passengers per day to only 400,000 to 500,000 passengers per day.