The “Whoosh” as it is called, from the sound of the passing railroad at 350 km/hr, was officially opened on Oct. 2 after a month of test runs which gave people free rides. Global TImes reports that President Jokowi officially opened the HSR in Jakarta on Monday morning. They report that it is expected that as many as 10 million people will ride the train in the first year. Widodo said that the HSR “marks the modernization of Indonesia’s transportation system, which is efficient, environmentally friendly and integrated with other public transportation networks.”
PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia-China (KCIC), a consortium of Indonesian and Chinese firms, is responsible for developing and operating the HSR. China Railway No.4 Engineering Group Co participated in the construction of the rail line, which is 142 kilometers long and has a maximum design speed of 350 kilometers per hour. It will cut the journey between the two cities from 3.5 hours to just 40 minutes.
The project is part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative, and had been agreed upon between the two nations in 2015.
