0 Feeder buses to be improved

The Denpasar Transportation Agency says it will make improvements in 2013 to encourage residents to use the feeder minibuses serving the city’s Trans Sarbagita rapid transit system. Among the improvements would be a contest for passengers, a new ticketing system and new vehicles, Dewa Adi Pradnyana, head of the agency’s land transportation service unit, said. The feeder bus fleet would be expanded from a current 56 vehicles, additional routes would be opened connecting the western and northern sides of the capital city and air conditioning installed on the vehicles. 

‘We are still studying the most suitable ticketing system. Hopefully, we will get it together within the next two months,” Dewa said. The number of feeder buses will also be increased from the 56 in 2014. The feeder buses currently serve 1,500 passengers a day on four routes. The most heavily used route 2 connects Matahari Terbit Beach with Sanur and areas around Sanglah Hospital. “Over the last four months, the number of [Trans Sarbagita] passengers has reached 125,000. We hope more people will use the minibuses to minimize the use of private vehicles and reduce traffic congestion,” Dewa said. 

The agency will evaluate the Trans Sarbagita system at the end of the year, after the system finishes its fourth month of operation. Trans Sarbagita’s four current routes are GOR Ngurah Rai to Renon, Matahari Terbit to Sanglah, Simpang Teuku Umar to Jl. By Pass Ngurah Rai, and Jl. Sudirman–Jl. Waturenggong–Jl. Sidakarya. The routes intersect and share several stops along Trans Sarbagita’s two main routes on or around Matahari Terbit, Jl. Sudirman, GOR Ngurah Rai, Jl. Diponegoro and Benoa Pesanggaran. According to the Denpasar Transportation Agency, about 1,000 people a day use the Trans Sarbagita system. Rider numbers are larger on the weekends.

source : bali daily