JAKARTA: The West Java administration has unveiled a plan to construct a new railway line to provide faster and integrated connectivity between Jakarta and Bandung, an initiative experts warn may cut into the market for the Whoosh high-speed rail (HSR) service connecting the same two cities.
The plan is part of a broader collaboration agreement between the provincial authorities and state-owned railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI), firmed up through a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed on Nov 25, which lays the foundation for massive railway infrastructure development in the region
“Kilat Pajajaran will cut travel time, making it quite fast; from Gambir [Station] to Bandung will only take one-and-a-half hours,” West Java Governor Dedi Mulyadi said, as quoted in a press release.
According to the West Java Regional Revenue Agency’s (Bapenda) website, the project is estimated to require Rp 8 trillion (US$482.2 million) in investment from the local administration, with Rp 2 trillion to be disbursed annually over the envisioned four-year construction period from 2027 to 2030.
KAI president director Bobby Rasyidin said the project study would begin in early 2026.
The Kilat Pajajaran is expected to further connect Bandung to wider areas in the eastern part of West Java, including Banjar, Garut and Tasikmalaya, with a total travel time of three hours from Jakarta to Banjar.
Governor Dedi demanded that cities and regencies invest in the project’s development.
“Regencies that don’t invest in building the Kilat Pajajaran train line will not have the train stop there. It will pass through. Stopping in Bandung is enough,” he said.
Djoko Setijowarno, a transportation expert from the Indonesian Transportation Society (MTI), considers a new fast train “unnecessary”, given that the Jakarta–Bandung route is already well-served with multiple transportation options, including the Whoosh HSR.
The government should instead optimise existing modes of transportation and reallocate the funds to improve connectivity within the West Java region, he told The Jakarta Post on Tuesday (Dec 2).
Djoko also cautioned that the new project would face significant cost pressure, considering the need to construct entirely new tunnels.
Ronny P. Sasmita, a senior analyst at the Indonesia Strategic and Economic Action Institution, pointed out that too many transportation modes on the same corridor may “fragment demand”, preventing each service from reaching “economics of scale”.
He warned of a potential “cannibalism” of the Whoosh HSR, potentially exacerbating its mounting financial challenges amid high debt and fluctuating utilization rates, given that some regular Whoosh passengers could turn to Kilat Pajajaran as a more affordable and flexible option.
“Without integrated regulations, internal competition can erode margins and increase commercial failure risks for both,” he told the Post on Tuesday.
The Kilat Pajajaran would introduce another fast option for commuting between Bandung and Jakarta, though with a travel time slightly longer than Whoosh’s approximately 45-minute ride.
Whoosh was launched in October 2023. Its construction sparked debate over financial viability when the project cost rose to $7.27 billion from the initial estimate of $6 billion.
Loans from China Development Bank covered 75 per cent of the cost, while the remaining 25 per cent was contributed by consortiums from Indonesia and China.
The Indonesian consortium, PT Pilar Sinergi BUMN Indonesia (PSBI), is comprised of state-owned enterprises, with KAI holding the largest share.
Ronny argued that the projected investment of Rp 8 trillion to develop the new fast train line could be “sensible”, provided it was backed by thorough planning, including solid assessments of projected demand, operational costs and maintenance needs, as well as service frequencies and fare strategies.
“Many global studies on railway projects show a tendency toward overoptimistic projections of ridership and profitability, while actual outcomes tend to miss the mark, so it needs to be assessed comprehensively from the start,” he said.
Ronny warned that, should demand fall short of the target, running the service would increase the financial burden on KAI.
He added that the government should address the potential overlap with Whoosh through a complementary operational design, such as by differentiating the market segments, integrating ticketing systems and arranging schedules in a way that the services would support rather than compete with one another. - The Jakarta Post/ANN
