KAI Saves Rp27.6 Million in Ticket Printing Costs During Christmas with Face Recognition Service

Photo: Special

JAKARTA - PT Kereta Api Indonesia (Persero) or KAI has managed to save printing ticket costs of Rp. 27.6 million during the 2025 Christmas and New Year 2026 (Nataru) Transportation period through the use of face recognition services.

Throughout the period from December 18, 2025 to January 4, 2026, as many as 748,855 customers took advantage of this facility in the boarding process of the train.

KAI Vice President of Corporate Communication Anne Purba said that face recognition not only speeds up and simplifies services to customers, but also encourages efficiency in terms of operations while supporting the principle of environmental sustainability.

"Face recognition allows customers to board without a physical ticket and does not need to report showing their identity. In addition to increasing the convenience and smoothness of travel, this innovation also supports KAI's commitment to sustainability because it reduces the use of paper whose raw materials come from trees," said Anne in an official statement, Selesa, January 6.

Based on KAI's calculations, the use of face recognition by hundreds of thousands of customers during Nataru is equivalent to saving around 1,872 rolls of ticket paper.

"This efficiency has a direct impact on cost savings in purchasing paper of around IDR 27.6 million in the period," he said.

This savings also contributes to reducing the consumption of natural resources and paper waste, in line with KAI's efforts to strengthen the implementation of environmentally friendly and sustainable transportation services.

In terms of user distribution, the five stations with the highest number of face recognition users during Nataru 2025/2026 were recorded at stations with high passenger volumes.

Gambir Station was the highest with 145,025 customers, followed by Yogyakarta Station with 91,064 customers, Pasarsenen with 68,303 customers, Semarang Tawang with 51,805 customers, and Purwokerto with 43,485 customers.

Currently, face recognition facilities are available at 22 stations spread across various regions, including Bandung, Bekasi, Cirebon, Cirebon Prujakan, Gambir, Jember, Kiaracondong, Kutoarjo, Lempuyangan, Medan, Malang, Madiun, Pekalongan, Pasarsenen, Purwokerto, Surabaya Pasar Turi, Surabaya Gubeng, Solo Balapan, Semarang Poncol, Semarang Tawang, Tegal, and Yogyakarta.

During the 2025/2026 Nataru Transportation period, KAI in total served 4,179,095 customers or grew 12.02 percent compared to the same period last year.

Operational performance is also maintained with a departure on-time rate of 99.68 percent and an arrival on-time rate of 96.13 percent.

"Thank you to all customers for the trust given during the Christmas and New Year Transportation period. KAI will continue to improve digital and operational services on an ongoing basis so that train travel is more reliable, safe, comfortable, and environmentally friendly," concluded Anne.