Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The city administration is currently investigating allegations that busway operator TransJakarta has been paying inflated operational rates to bus suppliers.

Deputy Governor Prijanto said on the weekend the administration was in the process of questioning officials at several busway-related organizations.

"We're investigating people who may be involved," he said.

The allegations were sparked after bus suppliers PT Primajasa and PT Lorena won recent public tenders to supply busway busses, offering significantly lower operational fees than existing suppliers.

The administration conducted several tenders recently to find new operators for corridors IV to VII, which have all been plagued with overcrowding problems since last year.

Primajasa outbidded its competitors after offering a rate of Rp 9,536 (approximately US$1.00) per kilometer on Corridor IV and Rp 9,371 per kilometer on Corridor VI, Bisnis Indonesia reported.

Lorena submitted a bid of Rp 16,661 per kilometer to operate busses on Corridor V and Rp 9,443 on Corridor VII.

Corridor IV stretches between Pulo Gadung in East Jakarta and Dukuh Atas in Central Jakarta, Corridor V runs between Kampung Melayu in East Jakarta and Ancol in North Jakarta and corridor VI extends from Ragunan to Kuningan, both of which are in South Jakarta. Commuters can travel between Kampung Rambutan in East Jakarta and Kampung Melayu using Corridor VII.

TransJakarta reimburses bus suppliers based on agreed operational fees, which are paid for each kilometer busses travel. Fees depend on the consumption level of compressed natural gas, lane conditions and lane distance.

Current bus supplier PT Jakarta Trans Metropolitan operates along corridors IV and VI and charges TransJakarta Rp 12,885 per kilometer traveled.

PT Jakarta Mega Trans, another bus supplier, charges TransJakarta Rp 12,885 for each kilometer traveled on corridor VII.

Jakarta Mega Trans, which is responsible for corridor V, is yet to operate 17 currently idle buses. The company agreed to charge TransJakarta Rp 22,597 per kilometer.

Almost 70 percent of TransJakarta's operational costs last year, amounting to Rp 400 billion, were spent on paying bus suppliers.

The operational fees calculated by stakeholders are taken into account in the city budget each year to determine busway subsidies.

Jakarta Transportation Agency head Nurachman said he was unaware of any developments in the ongoing investigation.

TransJakarta head Drajad Adhyaksa was not available to comment on the issue when contacted by The Jakarta Post.

 

Tags: Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, TransJakartas operational costs