REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BOGOR - The state railway company has operated commuter line specially for female and child passengers between Bogor and Jakarta. "It is good, we feel comfortable without men in the train," Tia Renjani, one of the passengers said before departing from Bogor to her working place in Jakarta on Monday.
Tia said the female passengers could enjoy with greater freedom traveling with the train. There were special carriage for female passengers before provided by the railway company but the number was not enough and more often male passengers also forced themselves in, she said. She said she hoped the railway company would use more security officers to guarantee that no male passengers would board the train.
Chief of the Bogor railway station Eman Sulaiman said the special train would start the commuting service from Bogor at 06.30 local time every day and it would be in operation until 18.36. "The special carriages are provided on growing demand from female passengers," Eman said.
He said PT KAI had received many letters from women complaining about inconvenience in their short travel between Jakarta and its satellite cities including Bogor. He said they complained about petty crimes, pickpocketing, sexual abuses, hypnotism.
"The train is new and has never been used before. They are used for commuter line carrying females and children only," he said.
The train has a seat capacity for 84 passengers with 16 security officers two of them are women. The train commute between Bogor and Jakarta in four trips every day with the first trip starting from Bogor at 06.30.
In the first day of operation on Monday many men were not aware of the special service for female passengers tried to jump in to the train but security officers turned them back. Eman said the railway company already announced the plan to operate a special train for female passengers before, but not every body took notice.
"However, there is not significant problem . The first day operation has been smooth, " he said. The seats were not all occupied in Bogor but in Depok the train was fully occupied on the way to Jakarta.