Transportation at Jakarta by BUSWAY

TransJakarta mulls buses exclusively
Busway operator TransJakarta is considering allocating buses exclusively for female passengers during peak hours following complaints from some
passengers.

TransJakarta head Dradjat Adhyaksa said his office was considering women-only buses after receiving complaints in several forums and mailing lists.

“Female passengers are at risk of sexual harassment in packed buses. We want to give them better service with the limited resources we have. After all, the number of female passengers is more than half of our total passengers,” Dradjat said Friday.

He said his office would submit the proposal to the transportation agency next week.

He said TransJakarta would try women-only buses on Corridor I (Kota-Blok M) first, because that was the corridor with the highest number of passengers.

The plan, he said, will not be expensive because it will use existing buses and only requires busway employees to guide passengers to the correct buses.

“We can allocate some of the 90 buses on Corridor I for female passengers. For a pilot project, we can use the ratio of 3:1, with three buses for mixed passengers and one bus for female passengers. The pilot project will be carried out during peak hours, between 4 and 6 p.m.,” he said.

“If the response is positive, we’ll continue the women-only bus program,” he said, adding the program would start after securing approval.

Governor Fauzi Bowo said he supported the plan.

“However, the busway operator should focus on bus availability on all corridors. They should also consult their supervisors before carrying out this plan,” he said at City Hall.

He said he would hold a meeting next week about bus availability for corridors 8 (Lebak Bulus-Harmoni), 9 (Pinang Ranti-Pluit) and 10 (Cililitan-Tanjung Priok).

Operation of these three corridors is awaiting the completion of busway shelter construction and bus procurements.