MRT Jakarta

Jakarta now has its own MRT system running from Lebak Bulus to Bundaran Hil or right outside Grand Indonesia / Pullman Hotel Sarinah. It's been a long time coming.

You can pay for the single trips via a range of different methods; EToll, Flazz, and MRT Cards and the price from May will for the full trip is 14,000 Rupiah one way, becoming less the shorter distance you travel.

There are lots of staff, guards and help at the stations and they are there to tell people how to behave and how to ensure the MRT doesn't end up badly treated and misused so one could say that's a near impossible task. I guess the MRT will serve as not only the best way to go from the South of the city to Sarinah in terms of speed and ease but it will be also another tourist attraction for many people to use and try.

As with Singapore, Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur and many other MRT's around the world it is  modern and looks pretty much the same. It the announcer stated 'City Hall' as a stop yesterday it would have been hard to tell which city I was in. but its a start. Now we have to wait another 5 years for the next line to be built going north to Stasion Kota via the Monas while the LRT from the east of the city slowly marches  to Dukuh Atas. Will all this help the city's traffic and pollution? I guess it will if the city's managers sort out how to feed people to the MRT and LRT so that it is more useful and get us all on buses that take us to the places we really need to get to not to places that are almost where we need to get to.

If you want to try the MRT for something do, go early, not on Sunday especially after Car Free day finishes. In the week after the rushes to the city are over. Friday's between 11 and 1 are good if you are not busy worshiping. If want to fully experience being in a crowd and queuing Indonesian style go to the railway station at Tanah Abang, it makes Manggarai look like a picnic....