Indonesia’s Whoosh High-Speed Rail Sees Passenger Surge Ahead of Eid al-Fitr
JAKARTA, March 29 — Indonesia’s Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway, known as Whoosh, is experiencing a sharp rise in passenger numbers as the country prepares for the annual Eid al-Fitr holiday exodus, operator PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (PT KCIC) announced on Friday.
The passenger count for Friday alone is estimated to hit between 18,000 and 20,000, according to Eva Chairunisa, General Manager and Corporate Secretary of PT KCIC — a joint venture between Indonesian and Chinese firms. “We anticipate the daily passenger volume could peak at 24,000 during the holiday period,” she stated in a press release.
By comparison, daily ridership typically ranges from 16,000 to 18,000 on weekdays and rises to around 21,000 on weekends.
Eid al-Fitr, set to fall on March 31, marks the end of Ramadan and is one of the most significant holidays in Indonesia, prompting hundreds of millions to travel to their hometowns in a tradition known as mudik. The heaviest flow of passengers on the Whoosh line is expected on April 2, particularly from Halim Station in Jakarta to Bandung, West Java.
To accommodate the seasonal demand, KCIC is operating 1,346 train trips between March 21 and April 11, offering a total of 808,000 seats.
Chairunisa also urged travelers to plan ahead: “KCIC reminds all passengers to book tickets in advance via online platforms or through offline counters and vending machines at stations.”
— Source: Xinhua
