TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - City-owned transportation company Transjakarta noted a surge in the number of passengers by 22 percent since the enforcement of the transitional large-scale social restrictions or PSBB.

“After the transitional PSBB takes effect, the average number of daily users increases by 22 percent during limited operational hours,” said the company’s spokesperson, Nadia Disposanjoyo, to Tempo on Friday, June 12.

Nadia said that for the transition period, Transjakarta extended the operational hours from 5 a.m. until 10 p.m. for the public and until 12 a.m. for medical workers. In the PSBB period, the bus served passengers from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. for the public and from 10 p.m. to 12 a.m. for medical workers.

The company also operated three additional routes integrated with the Indonesian Commuter Train (KCI). Previously, during the PSBB, it closed several routes to 13 corridors.

Nadia further mentioned that Transjakarta averagely served 127,306 passengers per day at 13 corridors, reaching 231 kilometers across five areas of Jakarta.

To reduce the long lines of passengers, particularly during the transitional PSBB, Transjakarta held several simulations and managed to break down the queues faster.

“We record data that the breakdown time drops from 25-30 minutes when the transitional PSBB begins up to less than five minutes on its third day, or the passengers’ density can be reduced up to 80 percent,” Nadia explained.

The Jakarta administration enacted the transitional PSBB period starting June 5 and relaxed a number of restrictions. Offices and several public activities resumed operations while adopting the COVID-19 health protocols.

TAUFIQ SIDDIQ