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🇮🇩 Indonesia /Energy & Infrastructure

Indonesian Transportation Community Demands Railway Overhaul After Bekasi Collision

From Tempo · (7m ago) Indonesian Critical tone

Translated from Indonesian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

TLDR

  • The Indonesian Transportation Community (MTI) demands a systemic overhaul of the national railway system after a train collision in Bekasi.
  • MTI points to potential operator negligence and suboptimal safety system implementation as causes, drawing parallels to a 2010 incident.
  • Recommendations include accelerating double-track construction, auditing train control systems, and implementing advanced safety technologies.

The Indonesian Transportation Community (MTI) has issued a stark warning, calling for a fundamental restructuring of the nation's railway operations following the recent train collision at Bekasi Timur Station. This incident, eerily similar to the 2010 Petarukan collision, has exposed deep-seated systemic vulnerabilities that MTI argues can no longer be ignored. The community's stance is clear: a reactive approach to safety is insufficient, and a comprehensive, predictive, and preventive risk management framework is urgently needed.

In this latest case, preliminary allegations point toward operator negligence in responding to a stop signal.

— Deddy HerlambangDeddy Herlambang, Chairperson of the MTI Railway Forum, suggested a potential cause for the collision.

Deddy Herlambang, Chairperson of the MTI Railway Forum, has been vocal in highlighting the potential causes, citing operator negligence in signal adherence and the inadequate integration of technology-based safety systems. Despite existing regulations mandating Automatic Train Safety Systems (SKKO), their implementation appears suboptimal, particularly on busy lines with mixed traffic. MTI emphasizes that prioritizing safety principles over punctuality and addressing operator fatigue are critical steps that have been overlooked.

A violation of this signal has the potential to cause a collision.

— Deddy HerlambangDeddy Herlambang explained the critical importance of adhering to signaling protocols.

MTI's proposed solutions are ambitious, advocating for accelerated infrastructure development, such as the double-double track on the Bekasi-Cikarang line, to segregate train services. Furthermore, they call for rigorous audits of the Centralized Train Journey Control System (PPKT) and the adoption of advanced safety technologies like Automatic Train Protection (ATP) and modern signaling systems. The MTI's urgent plea is for a paradigm shift, moving from a reactive safety culture to one that proactively identifies and mitigates risks across the entire railway network, ensuring the reliability and safety of Indonesia's vital transportation infrastructure.

This accident shows that our safety system remains reactive, rather than being based on predictive and preventive risk management.

— Deddy HerlambangDeddy Herlambang criticized the current reactive nature of the railway safety system.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Tempo in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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