Advertisement
Indonesia gets its China-backed ‘Whoosh’ Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway rolling
- President Joko Widodo officially named the railway ‘Whoosh’ after the acronym for ‘timesaving, optimal operation, reliable system’ in Indonesian
- Though beset with delays, cost overruns and doubts about its commercial benefits, the US$7.3 billion, 142km-long railway is now operational
Reading Time:3 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
Indonesian President Joko Widodo inaugurated Southeast Asia’s first high-speed railway on Monday as it was set to begin commercial operations, a key project under China’s Belt and Road Initiative infrastructure initiative that will drastically reduce the travel time between two key cities.
Advertisement
The project has been beset with delays and increasing costs, and some observers doubt its commercial benefits. But Widodo has championed the 142km (88-mile) railway, which was issued its official operating licence from the Transportation Ministry on Sunday.
The US$7.3 billion project, largely funded by China, was constructed by PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China, known as PT KCIC, a joint venture between an Indonesian consortium of four state-owned companies and China Railway International Co. Ltd.
The railway connects Jakarta with Bandung, the heavily populated capital of West Java province, and will cut travel time between the cities from the current three hours to about 40 minutes.
Its use of electrical energy is expected to reduce carbon emissions.
Widodo in his opening remarks officially named Indonesia’s first high-speed railway – the fastest in Southeast Asia, with speeds of up to 350km/h (217mph) – as “Whoosh”, from “Waktu Hemat, Operasi Optimal, Sistem Handal,” which means “timesaving, optimal operation, reliable system” in Indonesian language.
“The Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train marks the modernisation of our mass transport, which is efficient and environmentally friendly,” Widodo said.
Advertisement
Advertisement