Transjakarta

Transjakarta (stylised as transjakarta, often erroneously called Busway, sometimes shortened as TJ and branded as TiJe) or Jakarta BRT is a bus rapid transit (BRT) system in Jakarta, Indonesia. The first BRT system in Southeast Asia, it commenced operations on 15 January 2004 to provide a fast public transport system to help reduce rush hour traffic. The system is considered as the first revolutionary public transit mode in the capital city of Indonesia. The buses run in dedicated lanes (busways), and ticket prices are subsidised by the regional government. Transjakarta has the world's longest BRT system (251.2 km in length), which operates about 4,300 buses. Transjakarta aims to have 50 percent of its fleet be electric buses by 2027. By 2030, the aim is for the entire Transjakarta ecosystem to use electric buses. As of November 2023, it serves an average of 1.134 million passengers daily. Transjakarta system is operated by municipally-owned company PT Transportasi Jakarta. However, most of its fleet is operated by various companies aside of the company itself.

History


Transjakarta was conceived to provide a fast, comfortable, and affordable mass transportation system. The proposal for a BRT system in Jakarta was emerged in 2001. Governor of Jakarta at the time, Sutiyoso proposed four mass public transportation modes in Jakarta:
 * Mass-rapid transit (MRT) — with its first line construction on phase 1 began in late 2013 and opened in March 2019.
 * Monorail — the construction began in 2004 but shortly thereafter, it was halted. The construction was expected to be resumed in 2013, but eventually the project was permanently cancelled two years later.
 * Bus rapid transit (BRT)
 * Water transport (waterway).

The MRT have larger passenger capacity and short travel time than the other proposals, but it required large foreign investments. At the time, Indonesia lost its investor confidence due to concerns regarding to unstable domestic situations in the early 2000s, so the MRT construction was unable to be realized yet. Among those four, the bus rapid transit was considered the most likely to be realized in short time because it doesn't require foreign investments.

The Institute for Transportation and Development Policy (ITDP) was an important party accompanying the BRT planning process. The initial concept was created by PT Pamintori Cipta, a transportation consultant who has frequently worked with the Jakarta Office of Transportation (Dinas Perhubungan Provinsi DKI Jakarta). Apart from the private sector, there were several other parties that also supporting this project, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and University of Indonesia's Center for Transportation Studies (UI–CTS).

The buses were given lanes restricted to other traffic and separated by concrete blocks on the streets that became part of the busway routes. The first Transjakarta line opened to the public on 15 January 2004. It was free for the first two weeks, after which commercial operations started on 1February 2004.

At present, Transjakarta has 13 primary routes and ten cross-corridor routes. In addition, there are about 200 "feeder" routes that serve beyond the exclusive busway corridors to serve satellite cities in Greater Jakarta. The number of Transjakarta buses has also increased dramatically, from 605 buses in 2015 to 4,300 in 2020. The fare has remained Rp 3,500 (27 US cents) per passenger since operations began. The service set a record in 2018 when it carried 730,000 passengers per day, a significant jump from 331,000 per day in 2015. About 189.8 million passengers used Transjakarta in 2018 and targeted to serve one million passengers daily. In November 2020, Transjakarta won the 2021 Sustainable Transport Award.

As of September 2019, Transjakarta is currently testing electric buses, with Bundaran Senayan – Monas as its first route. Transjakarta has undertaken an ambitious plan to expand its electric bus (e-bus) fleet to 10,000 units over the decade and to have all of its buses electric-powered by 2030.

Characteristics
The characteristics of Transjakarta listed in an Asian Development Bank study are:
 * Closed Trunk System without a Feeder System
 * Elevated Platform for Rapid Boarding and Alighting
 * Public Sector Bus Procurement and Private Sector Bus Operation
 * Operating at 450,000 passengers/day (2016)

Routes
15 corridors were initially planned, 14 of which are currently operational. Corridors 1 to 12 and Corridor 14 operates at a ground level, mostly separated from mixed traffic by roadblocks. Corridor 13 is the first and only corridor to feature a dedicated elevated track exclusively available for Transjakarta buses. The track is also shared with Corridor 13's branches, consisting of 13B and L13E, alongside Route 6V.

Other than the 14 main BRT corridors, Transjakarta operates 17 direct cross-corridor BRT routes, 57 feeder (non-BRT) routes split into two categories: partially integrated (stops at a mix of BRT shelters and pedestrian bus stops) and fully disintegrated (stops at just pedestrian bus stops with no BRT integration), alongside 11 suburban routes to satellite cities, 14 routes serving low-cost apartments, 96 micro bus routes branded as Mikrotrans, 4 Bus Wisata (city travel) routes, and 11 Royaltrans routes. Non-BRT and suburban routes fully disintegrated from BRT system is branded Metrotrans, while those partially integrated into BRT carries Minitrans branding for smaller buses or generic Transjakarta branding for standard BRT buses.

Timeline of routes

 * 15 January 2004: Corridor 1, (Blok M to Kota) (soft launch)
 * 1 February 2004: Corridor 1, (Blok M to Kota) (commercial service)
 * 15 January 2006: Corridor 2, (Pulo Gadung to Harmoni) and Corridor 3, (Kalideres to Pasar Baru) became operational.
 * 27 January 2007: Corridor 4, (Pulo Gadung to Dukuh Atas 2 [now Galunggung]), Corridor 5, (Kampung Melayu to Ancol), Corridor 6, (Dukuh Atas 2 [now Galunggung] to Ragunan) and Corridor 7, (Kampung Rambutan to Kampung Melayu) became operational.
 * 21 February 2009: Corridor 8, (Lebak Bulus to Harmoni) became operational.
 * 31 December 2010: Corridor 9, (Pluit to Pinang Ranti) and Corridor 10, (PGC 1 [now Cililitan] to Tanjung Priok) became operational.
 * 18 March 2011: Corridor 9 was the only corridor serving until 11.00pm. Followed by Corridor1, with transit point with Corridor9 at Semanggi shelter. The night service, however, stops only at certain shelters.
 * 20 May 2011: Corridor 2 and Corridor 3 initialised to serve until 11.00pm, but only open nine shelters out of 22 on Corridor2 and9 out of 13 shelters on Corridor3 remain open during the extended hours.
 * 1 July 2011: Corridors 4 to 7 began their late-night service, leaving only Corridor8 without a late-night service.
 * 28 September 2011: Three feeder bus routes launched with Route1 from West Jakarta Municipal Office to Daan Mogot, Route2 from Tanah Abang to Medan Merdeka Selatan and Route3 from SCBD to Senayan. The fare will be Rp.6,500 ($0.72), which cover tickets both for the feeder service and for Transjakarta buses. However, the feeder routes were eventually shut down because of the low number of riders.
 * 13 December 2011: Transjakarta implemented a policy of segregating male and female passengers, following the example set by the commuter rail network. The designated women-only areas have been established between the middle door and driver cabins.
 * 28 December 2011: Corridor 11 (Kampung Melayu to Pulo Gebang) became operational.
 * 14 February 2013: Corridor 12 (Pluit to Tanjung Priok) became operational.
 * 19 May 2014: The extension of Corridor 2 (Pulo Gadung to Harapan Indah) became operational.
 * 1 June 2014: Transjakarta introduced two new services called AMARI (Angkutan Malam Hari) and ANDINI (Angkutan Dini Hari), in conjunction serving from 10.00 pm to 5.00 am the next day, making Transjakarta effectively operational 24 hours a day. The late-night service served only Corridor 1, Corridor 3, and Corridor 9.
 * Mei 2015: The AMARI service got expanded to serve additional four corridors, consisting of Corridor 2, Corridor 5, Corridor 7, and Corridor 10.
 * 16 August 2017: Corridor 13 (Ciledug to Tendean [now Tegal Mampang]) became operational.
 * March 2020: Due to Covid-19 pandemic, the late-night AMARI service was cut short to serve just until 12.00 am.
 * 12 September 2022: Approaching the end of Covid-19 pandemic, the late-night AMARI service was reextended to serve until 5.00 am and began serving all the main BRT corridors (excluding cross-corridor BRT routes and all non-BRT services). The late-night AMARI service has an "M" prefix before the corridor number, so the late-night Corridor 1 service is coded M1 and so on. As of April 2024, most of the AMARI corridors serve the same route and stations as each's respective daytime main corridor. Exception applies to M12, which only serves from Penjaringan to Sunter Kelapa Gading (with Pluit to Penjaringan segment served by M9 and Sunter Kelapa Gading to Tanjung Priok segment served by M10), and M13 which terminates at Puri Beta 2 (Ciledug station closes at night).
 * 3 March 2023: Due to the replacement of a number of Corridor 1 stations by temporary shelters which affects Harmoni as a transit point, Corridor 3 was modified and interlined with Corridor 1 from Kebon Sirih to Bundaran HI stations (serving Kalideres to Bundaran HI), thus no longer serving Pecenongan, Juanda, and Pasar Baru stations. Corridor 8 was extended to serve the three stations (serving Lebak Bulus to Pasar Baru) and divided into two variants: the main "via Tomang" route, which is a mix of original Corridor 8 route and now-defunct cross-corridor Route 8A that runs at a headway of 5-10 minutes; and the alternative "via Cideng" route which mimics the original Corridor 8 by interlining with Corridor 3 from Petojo to Damai and runs at a headway of 50 minutes off-peak.
 * 29 May 2023: The adjusted Corridor 3 was cut short again, now terminating at Monumen Nasional station and no longer serving Kebon Sirih, MH Thamrin, and Bundaran HI stations.
 * 11 November 2023: Corridor 14 (Jakarta International Stadium to Senen) became operational as a BRT corridor. It was previously operated temporarily as a non-BRT feeder route from 1 March 2022 until 10 November 2023. As a main BRT corridor, it became a 24-hour route with late-night AMARI service.

Current fleet
Each bus is constructed with passenger safety in mind. For example, the body frame is constructed using Galvanyl (Zn–Fe Alloy), a strong and rust-resistant metal. There are also eight or ten glass-shattering hammers mounted on some of the window frames, and three emergency doors for fast evacuation during an emergency. There are also two fire extinguishers at the front and back of the buses.

A typical Transjakarta bus is painted with blue and white livery with the Transjakarta logo. Transjakarta buses was previously mandated to use compressed natural gas (CNG) and prohibited from using diesel fuel, but regulations have since been revised to permit diesel-powered buses once again due to efficiency issues and a shortage of CNG refueling stations. To facilitate passenger ingress and egress, buses are outfitted with two doors on either side, while a partition segregates the driver from passengers to enable the former to focus more intently on operating the vehicle.

The capacity of each bus varies from 85, 100 to 120 passengers. Single Mercedes-Benz and Hino buses can carry about 85 passengers. Scania, Mercedes-Benz and Volvo Maxi buses can carry 100 passengers, and 120 can be carried by a standard articulated bus. Transjakarta operates some Chinese-made Zhongtong and Swedish-made Scania articulated buses on long corridors and those passing mostly straight roads in mix with non-articulated buses. Articulated buses may also be used for some high-demand cross-corridor BRT routes.

Passengers can only board Transjakarta's BRT buses from designated shelters due to the higher passenger doors (about a meter and half from the ground) equipped with automated swing and slide mechanisms, which are controlled by the driver; however, the slide mechanism has been replaced by swing doors on all new buses, and full-height acrylic glass barriers are installed near the sliding doors, while low street-level doors are used for fully-disintegrated non-BRT routes (that only stops at pedestrian bus stops) with a driver's door on the front-left side of the bus for big buses and a pair of hydraulic folding doors for medium buses.

Transjakarta buses have electronic boards and speakers that announce the name of shelters in Indonesian and English, bi-directional radio transceivers for communication between drivers and control centers, at least four mandatory CCTV cameras per bus, and automatic air freshener dispensers to keep the air fresh during rush hours. The announcer system, officially mentioned as On-Board-Unit (OBU), is synced to the bus position on GPS and is automatically triggered by checkpoints along the bus route.

Transjakarta offers Royaltrans as a premium service, which provides passengers with premium seating, extra comfort, free Wi-Fi, USB charging ports, an onboard entertainment TV, and no standing allowed (the bus does not take new passengers when all the seats are occupied). Payment is made through electronic tapping equipment on board the buses, and the service is not integrated into the main BRT system. Royaltrans is not subsidised by Jakarta Municipal Government as it primarily serves connecting satellite cities. Transjakarta also operates Metrotrans, which uses low entry buses, serves non-BRT routes without integration to the BRT service, and stops at pedestrian bus stops. Some non-BRT routes, especially the ones partially integrated into the BRT system, are also served by standard BRT buses and a smaller version called Minitrans, although passengers can only board or alight at pedestrian bus stops through the front door near the driver, with elevated BRT doors for passengers at BRT shelters. Transjakarta operates two free-of-charge services called Mikrotrans, consisting of microbuses operated by various microbus cooperations, and Bus Wisata (intercity travel bus) consisting of double-decker buses circling around significant roads in Jakarta. Both services are not integrated into the BRT system. Although free of charge, Mikrotrans still requires its passengers to tap in when boarding and tap out when alighting, but Bus Wisata does not.

In order to promote gender equality, Transjakarta is aiming to recruit more female drivers, targeting 30% of the total. As of 21 April 2016, Transjakarta introduced female-only buses for Corridor 1, which are operated by female drivers and onboard officers and painted pink to differentiate them from regular buses. Some routes also offer disabled-friendly buses, with plans to acquire an additional 300 such buses by 2017 to serve 15-20 routes.

Reference:

Future fleet



 * PT. Mayasari Bakti Scania K250IB 4x2 Euro III
 * Kopami Jaya (Koperasi Pengemudi Angkutan Mikrobus DKI Jakarta) Isuzu NQR71 as Mini Trans
 * PT. Metro Mini Isuzu NQR71 as Mini Trans
 * Kopaja (Koperasi Angkutan Jakarta) Mitsubishi FE 84G BC as Mini Trans
 * Electric Vehicle (EV) MAB MD12E NF Electric bus, BYD K9 Electric bus, BYD C6, Zhongtong LCK6126EVGRA1, Higer Azure KLQ6125GEV, and INKA E-Inobus

Note :Transjakarta stated that it will not buy any electric buses. Instead, electric buses will be operated by operators under the Rupiah-per-kilometer scheme. Currently all electric bus models listed is either under trial or is to commence trial in the near future.

Retired fleet


The Mercedes-Benz OH and Hino RG air-conditioned buses operated in Corridor1 are painted red and yellow, with a picture of a young brahminy kite, which looks similar to a bald eagle grasping a tree branch with three salaks on it. The buses use special fuel which is (a mix of diesel and biodiesel). For Corridors2 (bus colours: blue and white) and3 (bus colours: yellow and red), the buses are CNG-fueled Daewoo buses imported from South Korea. Corridors 4, 5 and6 used Grey Daewoo and Hyundai CNG buses, with Komodo and Huanghai articulated buses dedicated for Corridor5. Grey Hino CNG buses are used for Corridors7 and 8. Corridors9 and10 used Red coloured Hyundai and Komodo articulated buses, whilst Corridor 11 uses red Inobus articulated buses. Corridor 12 used to use red coloured Ankai and Inobus buses as well. Due to various coach builders being involved and design tweaks applied over time, the exterior and interior appearance, quality, and comfort varies between buses operating in the same corridor. Seats in old buses face the aisle to optimise passengers' movement during rush hours. Older buses were equipped with folding or hydraulic sliding doors, while newer units were equipped with swing doors.

In August 2011, Transjakarta operator installed cameras on one bus for a trial period. The plan is to install four cameras on each bus gradually in efforts to improve services such as to inform passengers waiting for buses about how crowded approaching buses are, and to prevent sexual harassment.

Note: Bold text indicates current operators

Reference:

Shelters


Transjakarta shelters (officially mentioned as a BRT station or BRT shelter) are distinguished from typical bus stops as they are often located in the middle of the road and require passengers to access them via elevated bridges, although some shelters lack this and are only accessed by pelican road crossing. Some of the shelters are equipped with escalators or lifts, and are designed to be seamlessly integrated into nearby buildings or integrated train stations. For instance, the Tosari ICBC stop used to be directly connected to the UOB Plaza, but has since been replaced with a road crossing. Similarly, the Blok M stop provides stair access to the nearby Blok M Mall. Accessing the shelter requires passengers to tap an electronic payment card (known as tap in), which they have to do again to exit the arrival shelter (known as tap out).

Older Transjakarta shelters are primarily constructed using aluminium, steel, glass, and concrete materials. The walls are made of aluminium and glass covers, with tread plates constructing the floors. To ensure proper air ventilation, fins are installed on the aluminium parts of the shelters. The concrete makes up for the supporting pillars of the shelters, which are usually painted blue. However, newer shelters built since the revitalisation project in 2022 ditch the glass and aluminium and instead have concrete-constructed walls whose height is only half of a typical human with no walls covering the space all the way to the top, allowing for air to move and circulate freely. The floors are also made of concrete, and all the pillars and covers are coloured creamy white instead of blue. Exception of this design applies to some shelters which are part of a larger building (such as CSW shelter part of its TOD building and Pulo Gebang shelter part of the Pulo Gebang Bus Terminal building), as such their design resembles the building they are part of. Newer shelters may also feature platform screen doors to ensure passenger safety, although its opening and closing aren't synced to the bus doors but rather whether it detects the bus in front of it.

Some of the elevated bridge ramps connecting the shelters have gentle slopes to accommodate disabled passengers, although some require passengers to walk a relatively long way up the ramps before doubling back to reach the boarding shelters. The floors of the bridges are typically made of tread plates, although some newer ones use concrete. However, noise is a problem for tread plates due to the movement of passengers, and some tread plates may become slippery during the rainy season. Older shelters usually lack sanitary facilities, although newer ones include large and disable-friendly restrooms and praying rooms.

Other facilities in a Transjakarta shelter include fans, top-up vending machines (although some older and smaller shelters lack this), and wayfinding boards showing which bus stops at which gate. All stations are also equipped with passenger information system (PIS) displays for each platform direction showing estimated time of arrival and number of upcoming and arriving buses, although its accuracy is questionable as it does not account traffic jams. Some shelters have two stories, with the upper story serving another corridor going through flyover (such as Flyover Jatinegara, a transit point of Corridor 10 and 11) or as a commercial area of food chains and minimarkets (such as Bundaran HI ASTRA, MH Thamrin, Tosari, and Dukuh Atas).

All routes stopping at any pedestrian bus stops, be it partially-integrated non-BRT, fully-disintegrated non-BRT, Mikrotrans, and Bus Wisata buses only stop at designated bus stops along the pedestrians and do not take passengers anywhere they stand. Designated pedestrian bus stops vary greatly in form from a building with canopy or roof to just a "STOP" sign with bus icon. Exception applies to CSW 2 bus stop, part of CSW-ASEAN TOD, which is designed to resemble a BRT station except with street-level platform screen doors, allowing for easy transfer into BRT or another non-BRT route. All buses serving these bus stops stop at all the bus stops on its line, regardless of whether there is a passenger or not waiting there.

Initially, shelters are open from 05:00am to 10:00pm although opening hours can be extended if there are passengers still waiting at closing time. Since midnight bus services are launched, a number of shelters start to operate 24 hours a day. Currently all the shelters (except Corridor 13's Ciledug, which still closes at 10:00 pm) serves round-the-clock. Shelters often become extremely overcrowded because of long and sometimes unpredictable intervals between buses. According to a report from the Indonesian Consumers Protection Foundation in 2011, the most common complaint from passengers about the service offered by Transjakarta was the long wait times for buses at some of the main shelters. This issue rearises during revitalisation project and closure of Harmoni in 2022, with customers complaining that Monumen Nasional as a transit point has not enough doors to serve many routes and shelters double-dutying as an alternative to revitalised ones are too small.

The large Harmoni Central Busway (HCB) shelter on Jalan Gadjah Mada, Central Jakarta, is built over the Ciliwung River. It is a transit point between Corridors 1, 2, 3, 5C, 5H, 7F, 8, 8A, 9B and 10H. This 500-person shelter has 18 bus bays. Although many trees had to be chopped down during its construction, an old banyan tree was an exception because it was considered rich in historical value. However, in October 2006 this tree was vandalised by people from the Pemuda Persatuan Islam religious group. Their motive was to show that the tree does not possess supernatural qualities.

On 15 April 2022, revitalization of 11 bus shelters began to improve passenger service, expanding public spaces for tourism, and accelerate integration with other public transportation services. Tosari and Bundaran HI ASTRA shelters are revitalized into an iconic "twin cruise ships that anchored at the Selamat Datang Monument", with the upper floor being a commercial area and photobooth balcony. The revitalization project is expected to rebuild 45 stations across the city and is due to be finished by mid-2024. The revitalisation includes full reconstruction of the shelters with the new style, such as half-height cream-colored concrete-constructed walls, concrete-made floors, and the inclusion of sanitary facilities.

Starting in March 2023, multiple stations along the Corridor 1's road are temporarily closed and replaced by temporary stations to provide the room for the Phase 2 of MRT Jakarta project, including the largest transit point of the network, Harmoni Central Busway station. These temporary stations are small and some of them are made of two separate buildings for opposing directions that require passengers to tap and pay again to cross between, making them unsuitable to be a transit point and as such they only serve Corridor 1. This results in notable changes to routes previously stopping and terminating at Harmoni, with affected corridors and routes, notably Corridor 2, 3, and 8 being rerouted and Monumen Nasional being the new temporary transit point. Some cross-corridor routes deemed no longer needed, such as 8A and 12M, were also scrapped or became limitedly operational.

In December 2023, Transjakarta announced that the company was renaming many of its BRT shelters. The changes were revealed and took place in January 2024, affecting every main corridor and 121 shelters. The reason cited by the company was due to neutralise shelter names from commercial and copyrighted names owned by third parties and to allow the commercialisation of shelter names through naming rights procedure, similar to that of MRT Jakarta and its stations. One such example is Bundaran HI shelter, which has ASTRA branding (referred to in service as Bundaran HI ASTRA) as part of naming right afforded to Astra International. Other reasons cited was to rename some shelters matching areas surrounding them or integrated railway stations, such as those in Kuningan and Cawang integrated with their respectively-integrated LRT Jabodebek stations. In 2024, the second naming right was afforded to municipally-owned Bank DKI for Gelora Bung Karno shelter, being rebranded as "Senayan BANK DKI".

Ticketing and fares


The cost of a Transjakarta ticket since its opening has been a flat rate of Rp 2.000,- at concessional times (05.00 a.m. to 07.00 a.m.) and Rp 3.500,- (about 24 US cents) each trip at all other times. The fare applies for all BRT and non-BRT services, except Royaltrans and city travel (Bus Wisata) services. Royaltrans costs Rp20.000,- (or Rp35.000,- for some routes) while Bus Wisata is free to ride. Passengers who wish to change direction or transit to other corridors do not need to pay again, provided they do not exit the shelter. An exception is in effect at some terminus shelters, which have separate platforms for arrival and departure areas that require passengers to exit and reenter paid area to move between. Some other shelters, notably many of which in Corridor 9, are also made of separate buildings for each direction that require passengers to tap out and pay again to cross to the opposing building that serves the opposing direction or other corridors or routes.

Up to 2015, passengers could purchase a single-journey paper ticket at the ticket booth in the shelter. In 2013, Transjakarta introduced the use of prepaid cards or e-tickets from BRI BRizzi, BCA Flazz, BNI Tapcash, Mandiri E-Money, Bank DKI JakCard, and Bank Mega MegaCash. The prepaid cards can be purchased and topped-up at any ticket booth in the shelter throughout the system, or the ATM of the issuing bank. The e-ticket is priced at Rp 40,000, Rp 20,000 for the card itself and a balance of Rp 20,000. The prepaid cards, except for Bank DKI JakCard and Bank Mega MegaCash, are also valid as a ticket in the Jabodetabek Commuter Train system as of June 2014, easing the integration plan between the BRT and the commuter train system. In April and May 2014, the Transjakarta management started compulsory use of e-tickets at several terminus in the system, based on news that the BCA Flazz Card could also be used in Jabodetabek Commuter Train. In mid-October 2014, 56% passengers have used e-tickets. Now, all Transjakarta corridors and shelters applied the compulsory use of the e-tickets, since 21 February 2015. 17 August 2016 marks the start of tap-out system trial in Corridor1 (Blok M – Kota), while a similar trial was started on 9September 2016 in Corridor2. The system is meant to control the flow of people going in and out of the shelters, discourage illegal entrance to and exit from the shelters, and to encourage sales and usage of the "e-tickets". In October 2016, the system had been implemented in all corridors of Transjakarta.

Starting on 24 August 2015 students who have the Jakarta Smart Card (Kartu Jakarta Pintar, KJP) can use it as an e-ticket for a free bus ride. The TJ Card, introduced in January 2018, provides free fares for their holders and is available for seniors above 60, residents of the Thousand Islands Regency, disabled persons, low-income households, teachers, mosquito controllers and mosque caretakers in addition to members of the Indonesian National Armed Forces and the Police.

In the early days of feeder (non-BRT) routes, passengers could pay cash to the bus conductor or use a prepaid card issued by a specific bank. This varied depending on the route (ex: Route 6H mainly accepted BCA Flazz cards only, Route 3E mainly accepted BNI Tapcash cards only), and was criticised for being highly unreliable. The card-reading device was sometimes unavailable, or different from the usual bank device issued in one route. This method of payment was gradually phased out in favor of the Tap-On-Bus (TOB) system. TOB acts similarly to the E-ticket payment system on shelters. It accepts payment from all prepaid bank-issued cards that are eligible on bus shelters. The only difference is that payment is done on board the non-BRT bus instead of shelters. In 2019, all buses assigned to Route 1H, 1N, 1R, 4F and 5F already has the TOB installed on it and make use of TOB for all payment.

As of 2024, all non-BRT routes already use the TOB system for all buses. Passengers boarding non-BRT buses require to tap in when boarding and tap out when alighting, both of which on the bus. For non-BRT routes that are partially integrated into the BRT system, if the passenger boards from or alights at a BRT shelter, tap in (if boarding from BRT) or tap out (if alighting at BRT) is done at the BRT shelter, while the other tap is done on the bus, unless both boarding and alighting are done each at a BRT shelter. Passengers can easily transfer between BRT and integrated non-BRT routes at a BRT shelter without tapping again. The most common criticism is the variance of fare-deducting mechanism due to some TOB machines deducting fare at tap in while others and all BRT shelters deduct fare at tap out, sometimes causing double-deducting error, which although has been mostly mitigated and now is very rare, still sometimes occurs.

On 2 October 2020, Transjakarta launched Tije, an app that allows passengers to buy tickets using QR codes. It was launched to reduce COVID-19 transmission by reducing interaction between passengers and ticket offices. The app also allows the users to see bus arrival times, although the function only works in BRT shelters and only tracks BRT buses. Previously, the bus tracking function is available in Moovit as well, but now it only works in Tije after Transjakarta terminates its contract with Moovit.

On 13 October 2021, KAI Commuter starts trialling its Multi Trip Card as a payment card for MRT Jakarta, Transjakarta and LRT Jakarta, as part of efforts integrating Jakarta's public transportation ticketing. However, the Multi Trip Card only works at a BRT shelter and cannot be used with TOB machines on non-BRT buses.

Passengers
During rush hours, people from upper or middle classes (one of the main targets of Transjakarta) usually prefer to use private cars or taxis to avoid the inconvenience of the overcrowded Transjakarta buses even though they have to bear with traffic jams instead. Many passengers are thus lower-middle-class people who are ex-users of other less comfortable and/or more expensive commercial buses. This situation is at odds with one of the objectives of Transjakarta, which was to reduce traffic jam during rush hours by persuading private car owners to use comfortable public transport. There is a special program for the student groups called Transjakarta goes to school. Participants in the program are assigned a dedicated bus. The aim is to train students to stand in line, be decent, and prefer public transport than personal vehicles. The municipal government has been trying to encourage the population to shift from their private vehicles to public transportation, especially Transjakarta. Thus, several regulations are put in place to restrict private cars on the street. By August 2018, the odd–even traffic policy increases Transjakarta passengers by 30,000.

Issues and accidents
Several design and operational problems have been identified. Despite having an exclusive bus lane, unauthorised vehicles illegally using the lanes in an attempt to more quickly navigate through the traffic jams are commonplace. Depot maintenance shops and special gas stations (most buses use compressed natural gas (CNG)) often have long lines of buses, restricting the availability of buses for service. The CNG powered buses also have suffered from higher fuel consumption than expected (one litre for 1.3 km compared to 2.1 km as specified) and high oil and moisture content requiring extra maintenance. Other problems identified were: a lack of feeder bus services, a lack of adequate transfer information and transfer facilities and a lack of articulated buses. A 2010 survey showed 75% of passengers transferred from medium or micro-buses to the Transjakarta buses, and it was estimated if direct service operations were implemented (i.e., multiple stopping points at some stations with bypass lanes and some services continuing beyond the trunk corridors) patronage would increase by 50%. A feeder bus service called APTB was introduced in 2012. These feeder routes stops at pedestrian bus stops like regular intercity bus system. As of 2024, there are 57 feeder routes referred to officially as non-BRT routes, some of which being partially integrated into the BRT system (stops at a limited number of BRT shelters) while others are fully disintegrated (stops at just pedestrian bus stops, some of which being located near the BRT shelters but still require to tap again to transfer).

In May 2013, it was reported that the system was losing passengers due to unpredictable service frequency, worsening travel times, and poor maintenance of the infrastructure and vehicles. The problem of excluding private vehicles from busways was still ongoing. By November 2013, after a campaign to "sterilise" the lanes improved travel times, reports indicate patronage had increased by 20,000 per day up to between 330,000 and 355,000.

From January to July 2010, there were 237 accidents involving Transjakarta buses, resulting in 57 injuries and eight deaths. Accidents occurred due to pedestrians crossing the busway and cars making U-turns. In 2011, in an effort to stop non-Transjakarta vehicles using the bus lanes, the Jakarta Police Chief suggested that Transjakarta buses should run against the direction of traffic flow. Usually, non-Transjakarta vehicles used the busway lanes during rush hours.

On 12 January 2012, a policeman from the Indonesian Police Headquarters, who was hired by Securicor, fired his gun near the ear of a Transjakarta officer after threatening to kill him. The policeman was angry after the Transjakarta officer stopped the Securicor car from entering the busway lane, which allows only Transjakarta buses, ambulances, and firefighters to enter. The police spokesman said that the policeman would be charged by criminal law or disciplinary sanction.

Hijacking
On 12 March 2012, four Transjakarta buses were hijacked by alleged university students at the Medan Merdeka Selatan street. The buses were driven to the front of the Universitas Kristen Indonesia (Christian University of Indonesia) campus. Three drivers were able to escape from their buses, but one driver was prevented from leaving and forced to drive the hijackers to their destination. Fire extinguishers, glass-breaking hammers and drivers' jackets were also stolen from the buses.

2013 corruption case
In 2014, a corruption investigation began over series of accidents related to poor conditions of new vehicles through fraudulent procurement of more than one trillion IDR. The probe indicted Head of Jakarta Transport Department Udar Pristono as suspect of the corruption case. Pristono argued that he was only working under the supervision of then governor Joko Widodo on the procurement project, and accusing him liable for the legal prosecution as he had the responsibility over financial budget abuses involved in his administration.

Bombing
On 24 May 2017, a twin bomb attack struck the Kampung Melayu Transjakarta bus terminal. The first explosion happened at nine sharp, near the terminal's toilet, and the second explosion happened five minutes after at the bus stop. In total, five people were killed, including the two suspects.

Sexual harassment


A number of sexual harassment cases have been reported on board crammed Transjakarta buses and their overcrowded stations over the past few years, as the number of passengers has continued to rise. Transjakarta responded by providing a women-only area at the front of its buses and launching women-only buses.

Burning incident
Demonstrations opposing a bill draft in October 2020 turned violent and multiple BRT shelters became targets. The stations of Bundaran HI and Sarinah were the first two shelters burned down, out of a total of 20 shelters that were either entirely or partially burned, looted, damaged and vandalised by rioters. Transjakarta claimed a loss of up to 55 billion Rupiah.

Rear-end collision
There has been cases where fellow Transjakarta buses collided in the Transjakarta lane. In 2016, Kopaja AC buses (under pilot integration program with Transjakarta) collided with Corridor 1 bus at Monas station triggering a chain collision and 2 fatal injuries. In October 2021, two buses serving Corridor 9 were involved in a similar accident, leaving 3 casualties.

Transit Oriented Development
Seventeen Transit Oriented Development (TOD) is being built to integrate of multiple transport systems to facilitate easy and convenient transit between various mode of public transportation. At Tebet, the TOD integrates Transjakarta and the Commuter Line. Meanwhile, at Dukuh Atas TOD (Indonesian: Kawasan Integrasi Dukuh Atas or KIDA), the aim is to prioritise walking and the use of public transport as a commuting solution, rather than using private vehicles. KIDA will integrate seven transport systems in total, which are the Jakarta MRT, Jabodebek LRT, Jakarta LRT, Soekarno-Hatta Airport Rail Link, Commuter Line, Transjakarta, and other bus services.

As of July 2019, there are about 1,170 Angkot micro-buses integrated with different routes of Transjakarta, which is expected to increase 1500 by the end of the year.