Jakarta's Governor Expects Cheap Monorail Fares

Jakarta, Oct 16 (Antara) - Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo expects cheap monorail fares to prompt the people to switch to mass transportation instead of using private vehicles. "If the monorail fare is to be expensive, then it is certain that not many people would be interested in using it; it should be cheap," said Joko Widodo after a monorail project groundbreaking ceremony here Wednesday. Joko Widodo said that while he was not in a position to specify any ticket fare range for the monorail, it certainly has to be cheaper than what private vehicle usage costs. "Ticket prices should be cheaper than if we used a private vehicle," he said. Joko Widodo also said that the MRT (Mass Rapid Transportation), Monorail, TransJakarta, Kopaja, MetroMini, and the commuter line train (KRL) will all be integrated to serve those using public transportation. "Once the monorail for the MRT starts functioning, additional new buses, TransJakarta buses, MRT, Monorail, TransJakarta, Kopaja, MetroMini, or KRL will all be integrated," he said. Despite that, it all comes back the market laws because the city government only executes programs to reduce congestion in the Capital. "I am only executing these projects, and eventually it will all depend on the laws of the market. Let`s hope that these projects are not stalled in a short span of time. We must remain optimistic," he said. Earlier, Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo inaugurated the groundbreaking ceremony for the Jakarta monorail project development in Kuningan, South Jakarta, on Wednesday. "The project remained stopped for five years, but thank God that on this day, the monorail project development will resume. We want to continue with the project," said Joko Widodo. Joko believes that the physical infrastructure for the monorail project will be completed by the end of 2016. "If work on a project is carried out diligently through day and night, it would meet the deadline, of course with the help of financial support. We already have the funding and the documents ready from the private sector," Joko said.