Jakarta – The Bali administration is planning to resume the operation of Trans Metro Dewata (TMD) next month, after the provincial bus service was halted earlier this year due to lack of funding from the central government.
The bus operator announced on New Year's Day that the Transportation Ministry's subsidy fund Buy The Service (BTS), which had kept TMD running since September 2020 at an estimated cost of Rp 90 billion (US$5.48 million) annually, had dried up.
"We are currently preparing the operational tender. Once the agreement is signed, we will start operations [again], hopefully by the end of April, because the public has been strongly advocating for the return [of TMD]," Bali Governor I Wayan Koster in Badung Regency said on Wednesday, as quoted by Antara.
Koster added that the mayor of Denpasar and the regents of Badung, Gianyar and Tabanan had "reached an agreement" to share the operating costs of the public bus service.
"Previously, the funding came from the state budget, but now we will jointly fund it through the regional budgets of Bali, Denpasar, Badung, Gianyar and Tabanan," he said.
Under the cost-sharing agreement, the provincial administration is to contribute 30 percent of the funds, with the three regencies covering the remaining 70 percent.
"We will support Tabanan since its PAD [regional revenue] is quite small. To avoid creating an additional burden, wealthier regions like Badung and Denpasar will [take up a greater] share," Koster said, as quoted by Detik.com.
Bali Transportation Agency head IGW Samsi Gunarta also confirmed the resumption of the TMD bus service.
"We have made the necessary calculations, reorganized the system and finalized the routes. Now, we just need to determine the operating schedule and assess the traffic density in different areas," Gunarta said.
Several adjustments would be made, he continued, as TMD would transition from a bus rapid transit (BRT) to a regular bus service. In addition, its fleet would be reduced from more than 100 buses to just 76.
The Transportation Ministry decided to slash this year's budget allocation for regional public transit development 60 percent to just Rp 177 billion, from Rp 437 billion in 2024, in line with the sweeping budget cuts ordered by President Prabowo Subianto to fund his costly initiatives, including the free nutritious meal program.