@Nithin Coca I really enjoyed your piece on Jakarta’s public transport. However, around the time your piece came to press, there was a fatal train crash in Bekasi. The piece itself mentions several other challenges, including the last-mile problem and competition from ride-hailing. While one crash is not a reason for people to avoid public transit, I would wager that people will be more scared to use it given the crash and its high profile. Beyond what you have written in the piece, how should the government attempt create a public transit culture, whereby use is entirely normal and common?
I’m certainly curious to see if the crash has any impact on public sentiment around transit. In Jakarta, at least, it’s long been known that motorcycle taxis (ojeks) are quite dangerous and result in a lot of fatalities, so safety has long been a concern.
So far, from what I’ve heard from contacts in Jakarta, is that the blame is being mostly put on a new electric taxi company with lower standards for drivers that only entered the Indonesian market a few months ago—it stalled on the tracks and caused the accident.
@Nithin Coca I really enjoyed your piece on Jakarta’s public transport. However, around the time your piece came to press, there was a fatal train crash in Bekasi. The piece itself mentions several other challenges, including the last-mile problem and competition from ride-hailing. While one crash is not a reason for people to avoid public transit, I would wager that people will be more scared to use it given the crash and its high profile. Beyond what you have written in the piece, how should the government attempt create a public transit culture, whereby use is entirely normal and common?
I’m certainly curious to see if the crash has any impact on public sentiment around transit. In Jakarta, at least, it’s long been known that motorcycle taxis (ojeks) are quite dangerous and result in a lot of fatalities, so safety has long been a concern.
So far, from what I’ve heard from contacts in Jakarta, is that the blame is being mostly put on a new electric taxi company with lower standards for drivers that only entered the Indonesian market a few months ago—it stalled on the tracks and caused the accident.