KRL Commuterline, commonly known as Greater Jakarta Commuter rail, Jakarta Commuter rail, and KRL Commuter Line Jabodetabek is a commuter rail system for Greater Jakarta in Indonesia. It was previously known as KRL Jabodetabek. It is operated by KAI Commuter (KCI), a subsidiary of the Indonesian national railway company PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI). The rail system uses rolling stock of rapid transit standard and operates high frequency services with minimum headway. In 2019, the average number of Commuterline users per day reached 1.04 million, with the record of the highest number of users served in a day being 1,154,080. "KRL" itself stands for "Kereta Rel Listrik" (literally "electric rail train" or "electric railcar"), a term for an electric multiple unit train.

History

Colonial era

In 1917, a plan to introduce electrified railway in Batavia was made by Dutch colonial railway company Staatsspoorwegen. A railway between Tanjung Priok to Meester Cornelis (Jatinegara) was the first line to be electrified. The construction began in 1923 and completed on 24 December 1924. The line was opened on 6 April 1925—in time for the SS 50th anniversary—with 3000-series locomotives from SLM–BBC (Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works – Brown Boveri & Cie), 3100-series electric locomotives from AEG Germany, 3200-series locomotives from Werkspoor Netherlands and passenger coaches from Westinghouse and General Electric. The electrification project continued and on 1 May 1927, all rail lines that surround Batavia has been fully electrified. Batavia Zuid station (now Jakarta Kota) was closed temporarily in 1926, was reopened on 8 October 1929. The last part of the electrification project, Batavia Zuid – Buitenzorg, was completed in 1930. After independence in 1945, the railway operation was taken over by DKA (Djawatan Kereta Api Repoeblik Indonesia, Indonesian Railways Bureau, former name KAI).

Decline and revival

Transportation in Jakarta was at its lowest point during the 1960s. Tramways in Jakarta were closed in 1960 and railway traffic on Manggarai – Jakarta Kota was restricted in November 1966. In 1965, a portion of railway line between Gondangdia and Sawah Besar was stripped from electrification, with remaining services on the portion now powered by steam and diesel trains. It was reported that then-President Sukarno wanted to get rid of anything that would block the view of Monas and Merdeka Square, then still under construction. After Sukarno's fall, the electrification was reconstructed and reopened in 1970. On 16 May 1972, PNKA (Perusahaan Negara Kereta Api, successor of DKA) ordered 10 new sets of electric multiple units from Japan, leading to the revival of the electric train services within Greater Jakarta. The new trains, built by Nippon Sharyo, arrived in 1976 and replaced the old locomotives and coaches. Sets consisted of four cars each, with capacity of 134 passengers per car. Those new trains (commonly known as EMU Rheostatik) will continue serving the passengers in Jakarta for the next 37 years. PNKA (later PJKA and Perumka) continued importing trains from Japan, South Korea, Belgium and Netherlands until the late 1990s. By the 1990s, Greater Jakarta commuter rail used a mixture of EMUs and DMUs, with lines waiting for electrification used Japan-made DMUs (class MCW 302) or locomotive-hauled coaches. In May 2000, the government of Japan via JICA and Tokyo Metropolitan Government donated 72 units of used Toei 6000 trains, formerly operating on Toei Mita Line. These were the first air-conditioned electric trains in Indonesia. The new trains were operated on 25 August 2000 for express services.

Commuterline era

The current form of electric train service in Jakarta was begun in 2008. Jabotabek Urban Transport Division, a sub-unit of KAI that handles commuter service around Jabodetabek, spun-off to form KAI Commuterline Jabodetabek (KCJ). Ticket revenues, rolling stock maintenance, and station management was transferred to the newly formed subsidiary, but all operational matters (e.g. scheduling and dispatching), rolling stock, stations and infrastructures remained under KAI responsibility. The modernization of the commuter railway system, however, did not begin until 2011. Network operations were greatly simplified from 37 point-to-point service patterns into six integrated lines (known as "loop line" system) all running local, stopping at every station, as express services were abolished. Service was also simplified into two service classes: Economy class (cheaper service without air conditioning, subsidized by Ministry of Transportation) and Commuter class (more expensive service with air conditioning). On 17 April 2013, the Commuterline extension to Maja in the Green Line commenced operation. On 25 July 2013, the economy class was discontinued, leaving the Commuter class as the sole service class throughout the network. In July 2013, the operator introduced the COMMET (Commuter Electronic Ticketing) system replacing the old paper ticket system and changing the old fare system into 'progressive fare' system, as well as modernization of all 80 serving stations. Starting on 1 April 2015, the Nambo line extension operation is commenced. Three line extensions have been opened between 2015 and 2017: the extension of Pink Line to Tanjung Priuk station which commenced operation on 22 December 2015, the extension of Green Line to Rangkasbitung station which commenced operation on 1 April 2017, and the extension of Blue Line to Cikarang station which commenced operation on 8 October 2017. In July 2015, KA Commuter Jabodetabek served more than 850,000 passengers per day, which is almost triple the 2011 figures, but still less than 3.5% of all Jabodetabek commutes. Until 5 March 2014, KA Commuter Jabodetabek only operates 8-car trainsets on all lines. In 2016, the operation of 12-car trainsets commenced. As of December 2019, it operates 1,057 trips per day by 90 trains. Importation of used Japanese trainsets for use in Commuterline resulted in a 2023 controversy, when the importation of the used trains were banned. In May 2022, KAI Commuter announced some changes to the network, marking the first modification of the routing system since 2011 reform. The Loop Line was discontinued with its Jatinegara-Manggarai loop part being absorbed by the Cikarang Line, which ceased service from Manggarai to Jakarta Kota in favor of the loop and was rebranded as Cikarang Loop Line with blue-circled "C" symbol. The Nambo branch of the discontinued line was absorbed by the Central Line, which was rebranded as Bogor Line with red-circled "B" symbol.

Service routes

The modernization project in 2011 introduced 6 integrated lines and 8 services which serve Greater Jakarta. In 2022, the number of lines was reduced to 5 as the Loop Line was discontinued and absorbed into Bogor Line and Cikarang Loop Line. The network route map is recognized by color code, destination, and since 2020, a station numbering system.

Ticketing and fares

Passengers may also purchase a card for multiple journeys, named Kartu Multi-Trip (KMT, "multitrip card"). KMT is priced at Rp 50,000 (including Rp 30,000 credit). The card has no expiry date and can be used with a minimum credit of Rp 5,000 after KCI introduced fare adjustment machines. Passengers who don't have enough credit in their KMT can top-up at fare adjustment machines or two-way ticket counters. Previously the minimum credit was Rp 13,000, based on the highest available fare in the system. The card may be topped up at the ticket counters or vending machines. Starting in October 2023 this card could also be used in other major transit systems such as Jakarta MRT, Jakarta LRT or Jabodebek LRT and TransJakarta In addition to KCI-issued cards, passengers may also purchase bank-issued cards. Unlike KCI-issued cards which may only be used for public transit systems and station's park-and-ride facilities, these cards may also be used for goods and services payments at selected merchants, gas stations, TransJakarta BRT, selected parking facilities, and toll road payments. Currently Commuterline accepts Mandiri e-Money, BRIZZI, BNI TapCash, flazz BCA, Bank DKI Jakcard, and Jak Lingko. Starting from 1 October 2019, Commuterline station gates accept tickets purchased through mobility and e-wallet apps. LinkAja! was the first to implement it, followed by JakLingko and Gojek apps in 2022. It uses QR code displayed by the app on passenger's mobile phone that can be read by scanner attached inside the system. Payment with LinkAja! can be used only if the passenger's balance is not less than Rp 13,000.00, as the payment directly deducts LinkAja balance, thus having similar mechanism as multitrip card. On the other hand, passengers using JakLingko and Gojek must choose their origin and destination before obtaining the ticket, similar to single trip cards. However, on January 16, 2023 payment for Commuterline tickets using LinkAja! has been discontinued.

Fares

Fare for Greater Jakarta region Commuterline is charged by distance travelled ( ' progressive fare '), Rp 3,000 for the first 25 kilometers and Rp 1,000 for every next 10 kilometers. The fare is subsidized by the Ministry of Transportation. For instance in 2016, the government allocated Rp 1.1 trillion public service obligation to Commuterline. Prior to the introduction of distance-based fare, the fare is determined by number of stations passed. The first five stations passed is charged at Rp 3,000 and every next three stations charged at Rp 1,000. Between July and November 2013, the charges were lowered to Rp 2,000 and Rp 500 respectively, after the government subsidized the fare. Number of passengers increased by 30% after one week of introduction of the new fares.

Stations

As of January 2019, there are 80 active and 4 inactive stations for Commuterline. All the stations have commercial zones of various sizes for operating retail stores, chain shops, and ATM booth. The stations have prayer place, toilets and dispensary for emergency health service. Stations have manual ticket counters as well as automated ticket vending machines since 2017. Started on 15 January 2019, all stations have free Wi-Fi service facility for passengers.

Busiest statistics

List of stations

Bold: Terminus or interchange stations Italic: Closed for Commuterline, open for intercity trains Strikethrough : Closed for all services

List of major stations

Below are the list of main and terminus stations, some of them also serve intercity train lines.

Rolling stock

Commuterline rolling stocks are composed of second-hand rail cars imported from Japan of Tokyo Metro, Toyo Rapid Railway, JR East (in which KAI Commuter has strategic partnerships with), and Tokyu Railways. All of these cars are legally classified as executive-class cars (K1). Domestically made air-conditioned cars produced by Industri Kereta Api (INKA) are no longer in service, although those trains will operate on Solo-Yogya Commuterline in Central Java. Trains are generally formed of 8, 10, or 12 cars, with a capacity of 80–110 passengers per car. The system had 1,020 cars as of July 2019. Train without air conditioning (mainly economy class) are no longer operated as KCI (the operator) begins the single-service operation of air-conditioned trainsets. One set of ex-economy class (Holec) has been retrofitted with air conditioning by INKA. Toei 6000 series, which began service in 2000, was the first air-conditioned train type to be scrapped in December 2015. They are replaced by a huge influx of newer secondhand 205 series trains. Since 1 January 2016, the ex-JR East 103 series were also retired from service.

Air-conditioned rolling stock

EMU classes mentioned as current/active by KCI on 28 April 2024:

Transferred to Yogyakarta Line

Future air-conditioned rolling stock

Retired/suspended air-conditioned rolling stock

Non-air-conditioned rolling stock (all retired)

Controversy

Incidents and accidents

Pre-2011 route and services reform

The accidents mentioned below involved trains operated by KAI Commuter's predecessor systems, such as ESS (1925-1939), DKA/PNKA/PJKA Jakarta Exploitation (1945-1976), Jabotabek Urban Railway (1976-1999), and Divisi Jabotabek (1999-2011), before the introduction of standard Commuterline service in July 2011 and standard Commuterline routes in December 2011.

Gallery

Rolling stock

Stations