Soekarno-Hatta Airport Train Inaugurated By President Jokowi In Today's Memory, January 2, 2018

President Jokowi and his staff inaugurated the operation of the Soekarno-Hatta Airport Train, January 2, 2018. (kai.id)

JAKARTA Memories of today, six years ago, January 2, 2018, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) inaugurated the operation of the Soekarno-Hatta Airport Train. The presence of the airport train is considered as a form of contribution from the government to provide comfortable access to and from the airport.

Previously, the desire to own the Soekarno-Hatta Airport Train was triggered in the era of Ignasius Jonan being the number one person in KAI. The project was constrained by several things, from permits to land acquisition.

The desire to own the Soekarno-Hatta Airport Train was sparked in 2011. Ignasius Jonan is behind it. The President Director of KAI insisted on presenting trains from and to the airport because of many benefits. Among other things, reducing fuel consumption, saving time, and reducing pollution levels.

The narrative is not just an empty message. Jonan felt that access to and from the airport was dominated by two-wheeled vehicles and buses. Jonan did not want to linger so that the choice of transportation modes varied. The airport train project was also discussed in late 2013.

Far from fire. Construction of airport trains is constrained by permission from the National Planning and Development Agency (Bappenas) and the Ministry of Transportation. The problem was summarized. However, other problems arose. Land acquisition affairs were not resolved in 2015.

Jonan's dream was continued by his successor in KAI, Adi Sukmoro. He tried to make the airport train project a priority. The project was fully supported by President Jokowi.

Adi Sukmoro is optimistic that the construction will be completed in mid-2017. The Soekarno-Hatta Airport Train is planned to be used as an example for the construction of airport trains in other parts of the archipelago.

If this mode of transportation is operational, Soekarno-Hatta Airport will be the second airport connected to the railroad tracks. Currently, only Kualanamu Airport in North Sumatra has been connected to rail-based transportation modes.

After Soekarno-Hatta Airport, a similar system will be implemented at Padang, Yogyakarta, and Solo Airports. Soekarno-Hatta Airport trains are projected to be able to carry 33.9 thousand passengers per day or 20 percent of the average number of airplane passengers, "explained Praga Utama and Joniansyah in their article in the Tempo newspaper entitled Airport Train Tickets Can Exceed Rp100 Thousand (2017).

The results were brilliant. The Soekarno-Hatta Airport train was tested at the end of December 2017. Then President Jokowi also directly inaugurated the operation of the Soekarno-Hatta Airport Train on January 2, 2018.

The inauguration was then considered a step forward. A breakthrough from the government to provide a choice of transportation modes from and to airports that are useful. Even though the operation has not yet touched Manggarai Station (still limited to Sudirman Baru Station: BNI City) as originally planned.

At the beginning of the operation, the Soekarno-Hatta Airport Train will serve passengers from Sudirman Baru Station, Duri Station, Batu Ceper Station, and Soekarno-Hatta Airport Station. Every day 42 (fourty-two) train trips are prepared with a headway of 60 (sixty) minutes. Departure schedule from Sudirman Baru Station starting at 03.51 WIB and final departure at 21.51 WIB. Departure schedule from Soekarno-Hatta Airport Station starting at 06.10 WIB and ending at 23.10 WIB.

To transport passengers from and to Soekarno-Hatta Airport, at the beginning of the operation 3 trainsets of trains were prepared. Each trainset consists of 6 trains with 272 seats on each series, so that within 1 day approximately 11,000 passengers can be transported. On each train, priority seats for people with disabilities, air conditioning, LED TV screens for entertainment and providing information on the position of the train, written on the Directorate General of Railways website, January 2, 2018.