Jakarta – State-owned railway company PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) resumed 19 long-distance journeys from Jakarta to other cities in Java this month.
The company's Operational Region (Daop) 1 Jakarta spokesperson, Eva Chairunisa, said in a statement on Wednesday that the trains were scheduled to depart from three stations in Jakarta: nine from Gambir Station, one from Jakarta Kota Station and the remaining nine from Pasar Senen Station.
The trains will serve Bandung, Cirebon, Semarang, Purwokerto, Tegal, Yogyakarta, Surakarta, Surabaya, Blitar and Malang, tempo.co reported.
For long-distance journeys during pandemic, PT KAI is offering discounted rates, starting from Rp 49,000 (US$3.32) for trains departing from Pasar Senen Station and Rp 85,000 for trips departing from Gambir Station.
The tickets are available for purchase seven days prior to the departure date through PT KAI's website and application as well as through some travel agents.
Ticket counters at stations will open three hours before the time of departure.
In an effort to control the spread of COVID-19, PT KAI has limited the occupancy of trains to 70 percent of capacity. The company is also requiring passengers to comply with "3M" health protocols: mask-wearing, handwashing and social distancing.
Passengers are required to show negative COVID-19 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or rapid test results.
PT KAI will take the body temperature of all travelers. People who have a temperature above 37.3 degrees Celsius will be not be permitted to board the train.
In July, PT KAI began providing rapid tests at certain train stations in a bid to boost ridership and ensure the safety of passengers. "We're providing this [rapid test] service for the passengers' convenience, especially for those who want to travel during the 'adapting to new habits' era," said PT KAI president director Didiek Hartantyo.
Before the pandemic, the railway company operated about 70 long-distance routes.
After the government's ban on this year's Idul Fitri tradition of mudik (exodus), PT KAI stopped all of its long distance and local passenger services. On June 12, the company partially resumed operations.
According to the Transportation Ministry, the closures caused a 43.6 percent year-on-year decline in passengers in the first half of 2020 – down to 118.6 million people.
Didiek said that before the pandemic, the company earned Rp 23 billion per day but that the figure had dropped to between Rp 300 million and Rp 400 million per day as of March, tempo.co reported on June 30. (jes)