TRAIN TRAVEL ON THE ISLAND OF JAVA WILL BE MORE STRICT BY THE BEGINNING OF JULY 5th, 2021

Jakarta –The Ministry of Transportation through the Directorate General of Railways (DJKA) issued a Circular Letter of the Minister of Transportation No. 42 of 2021 concerning Guidelines for the Implementation of Domestic Travel by Rail Transportation during the Covid-19 Pandemic Period.

This Circular, which takes effect on July 5, 2021, is a follow-up to the Circular of the Covid-19 Handling Task Force No. 14 of 2021 on Provisions for Domestic Travel During the Covid-19 Pandemic, which went into effect on July 3, 2021.

The Director General of Railways said that this policy was carried out to decrease the rate of the spread of Covid-19 in the Java region, especially through the rail transportation mode.

"It is hoped that with this Circular Letter, the rate of spread of Covid-19 can decrease, especially in the Java Island area," said Zulfikri.

According to the Circular, the main requirement for intercity train passengers to travel to Java Island is that the prospective passengers have received at least the first dose of COVID-19 vaccination. Prospective passengers must also show a letter of negative RT-PCR results whose samples were taken within a maximum period of 2 x 24 hours or a certificate of negative rapid test antigen results whose samples were taken within a maximum period of 1 x 24 hours or before departure time ( onsite).

Meanwhile, passengers on urban trains such as KRL, MRT, LRT, and Urban Local Trains are not required to show a vaccine card and a certificate of negative results for the RT-PCR test or rapid antigen test, but random checks will be conducted at various stations. If the rapid antigen test results are negative but the passenger has symptoms of COVID-19, the passenger is not allowed to continue the journey and must undergo an RT-PCR test.

Furthermore, Zulfikri stated that passengers must be disciplined in implementing and complying with the 3M Health Protocol, such as wearing masks, keeping a safe distance and avoiding crowds, and washing hands with soap or using hand sanitizers. Furthermore, passengers are required to wear 3 (three) layers of cloth masks or medical masks, not to speak directly or by phone, and not to eat or drink for trips lasting less than 2 (two) hours, except in special circumstances such as taking medicine.

In addition to the passenger requirements, Zulfkri stated that the Circular Letter limits the transport capacity of intercity trains to a maximum of 70%, KRL, MRT, LRT to a maximum of 32%, and Urban Local Trains to 50%. Several local trains schedule outside of the agglomeration area were also canceled. Meanwhile, KRL commuter line operation hour is limited to 04.00 – 21.00 WIB.
"This is applied to reduce the possibility of accumulation of crowd both at the station and inside the train," Zulfikri explained.

Meanwhile, prospective passengers who have already purchased tickets and wish to cancel or refund them should contact the train operator and follow the cancellation procedure outlined in the applicable laws and regulations, concluded Zulfikri. (Spn/wid)