TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian government clarified that the potential spread of the new coronavirus or officially known as COVID-19 was not only on the KRL or the Commuter Line connecting Bogor, Depok, and Jakarta.

The national spokesman for the coronavirus outbreak mitigation, Achmad Yurianto, explained that all crowded spaces also posed the risk of the virus transmission as it could be transmitted from person to person with close contact.

“[Possible virus transmission] does not only occur on the commuter line but also Transjakarta buses that are crowded in certain hours and other places,” said Yurianto at the Presidential Palace Complex, Jakarta, on Thursday, March 12.

Therefore, the government took anticipatory measures in such crowded places, especially in mass transportation.

“I have talked with airport authorities. They can, for example, open as many gates and check-in counters as possible to prevent people from queuing. The situation now is no longer normal,” said Yurianto.

Meanwhile on KRL, Yurianto claimed railway operator company PT KCI applied different procedures. KCI had ordered KRL officers to check commuters’ body temperatures randomly at stations, provided more than 700 bottles of hand sanitizers for a total of 88 train sets and 80 stations, and deployed on-trip cleaning officers.

DEWI NURITA