The Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway connects the Indonesian capital Jakarta and the tourist city Bandung. According to Xinhua News Agency, Indonesian President Joko announced the official opening of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway at the Halim High-speed Railway Station in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, on the morning of October 2. At the opening ceremony, Jokowi announced that the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail would be named "Whoosh", inspired by the sound of the high-speed rail. At the same time, in Indonesian, "Whoosh" is also the acronym for time-saving, efficient and advanced.
The Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, jointly built by China and Indonesia, connects the Indonesian capital Jakarta and the famous tourist city Bandung. The total length of the line is 142.3 kilometers and the maximum operating speed is 350 kilometers per hour. Travel time between the two places has been reduced from 3.5 hours to 40 minutes. Next, Indonesia also intends to extend the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway to Surabaya, Indonesia's second largest city, which is more than 700 kilometers away from Bandung.
Zhou Shixin, director of the Peripheral Diplomacy Office of the Institute of Foreign Policy at the Shanghai Institute of International Studies, told China Business News that the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway embodies the high speed, high quality and high efficiency of cooperation between China and Indonesia. Indonesia is also keen to promote the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway to the international community, hoping to demonstrate its achievements in infrastructure and economic construction and further attract overseas investment.
Joko said that the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway is the first high-speed railway in Indonesia and Southeast Asia, with a speed of up to 350 kilometers per hour. It is a symbol of further modernization of Indonesia's transportation industry. Joko also said that the technology used and the speed achieved by the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail are "brand new" to the Indonesian people.
According to Xinhua News Agency, the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway is a landmark project that integrates China's "Belt and Road" initiative and Indonesia's "Global Maritime Pivot" concept, and is a landmark project for pragmatic cooperation between China and Indonesia. It is the first time that China's high-speed railway has implemented its entire system, all factors, and the entire industry chain overseas.
On September 29, the Indonesian Ministry of Transport issued an operating license to Indonesia-China High-Speed Railway Co., Ltd. (KCIC). Previously, on September 7, the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway was put into operation, and citizens along the line could make reservations to experience the train for free.
Indonesia originally planned to officially sell tickets and start commercial operations in early October, but recently announced that the free trial service will be extended and charges will not start until mid-October. It is estimated that the one-way fare for each passenger will range from 250,000 Indonesian rupiah (approximately 117 yuan) for a second-class seat to 350,000 Indonesian rupiah (approximately 164 yuan) for a VIP seat.
According to previous reports by CCTV News, each EMU train of the Jakarta-Bandung High-speed Railway is composed of 8 cars, with VIP, first-class, and second-class seats, with a total capacity of 601 people. It can be operated in multiple ways. It is equipped with barrier-free facilities such as disabled toilets, Braille guidance signs, and equipment such as vending cabinets, coffee machines, and microwave ovens to provide passengers with a good riding experience.
Indonesia has always been known as the "country of a thousand islands" and is the largest archipelago country in the world. The Indian Ocean and the Pacific Ocean meet here. From the map, they look like pearls scattered across the blue and emeralds across the equator. However, the "Country of Thousand Islands" also means that the terrain is scattered, transportation and logistics costs are high, and factors such as lagging infrastructure have seriously restricted Indonesia's economic development.
For example, shipping goods from the Papua region in eastern Indonesia to the capital Jakarta takes longer than the time from Shanghai to Jakarta, and the logistics costs are even higher. Therefore, in recent years, Indonesia has always had an urgent need to improve transportation infrastructure and develop a modern transportation network.
In 2014, after Joko became President of Indonesia, he arranged his first visit to China. In November of that year, Joko took a ride on the Beijing-Tianjin intercity high-speed rail while attending the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) informal leaders' meeting. China's high-speed rail left a deep impression on him. He further strengthened Indonesia’s determination to have its own high-speed rail.
Indonesia has planned its first high-speed rail between the capital Jakarta and the famous tourist city Bandung. The two cities are connected by high-speed rail, which can greatly alleviate the traffic pressure between central cities. After Indonesia launched the bidding, the competition was extremely fierce. For example, Japan spent a large amount of money on research in advance and submitted three feasibility reports to the Indonesian government.
In April 2015, China sent a team of engineers to Indonesia for inspection. They traveled through tropical rainforests, bypassed volcanoes, and surveyed sites for high-speed rail in inaccessible areas. They finally handed over a feasibility study report of more than 400 pages as promised. At the same time, China’s plan also understands and respects Indonesia’s requirements of “not using the national budget and not providing sovereign guarantees.”
In October 2015, the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway construction project was "successfully awarded to a Chinese enterprise". It was the first overseas construction project of China's high-speed railway with its entire system, all elements, and the entire industry chain. Since then, Chinese and Indonesian builders have built bridges and laid tracks through the ravine-ridden mountains and rivers. According to Xinhua News Agency, the relevant person in charge of China Railway Group, which is constructing the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, said that the length of bridges and tunnels along the entire Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway accounts for 61.5% and 11.7%, respectively.
Zhou Shixin told China Business News that while cooperating with China, Indonesia has many cooperation with Western countries such as the United States, Japan and Australia, "but now it is the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway that can be used to make people shine." As an example, he said that the Jakarta subway built with Japan's assistance is also a landmark project in Indonesia, but it spans a long time and has been under construction for decades.
At present, China has become Indonesia's largest trading partner for 10 consecutive years. In 2022, the bilateral trade volume between China and Indonesia will reach US$149.4 billion. The economic and trade cooperation between China and Indonesia has achieved fruitful results, and the "synergy effect" of the docking of the two countries' development strategies has become increasingly prominent.