Indonesia’s China-backed high-speed railway: a ‘burden to carry’ for years to come?

After years of delays and budget blowouts, the US$7.2 billion Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train will be President Joko Widodo’s ‘costly legacy’

But with repayments, interest and maintenance costs, the belt and road project is unlikely to be profitable ‘even after the next three presidents’

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People take pictures with a train on the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway. After years of delays and budget blowouts, the US$7.2 billion project is set to open to the public on Sunday. Photo: AFP

Published: 11:30am, 30 Sep 2023

Indonesia’s launch of Southeast Asia’s first high-speed railway is set to be an occasion of national pride, but the China-backed project’s outstanding debt also highlight the costs of what is sure to become President Joko Widodo’s legacy.

After years of delays and budget blowouts, the US$7.2 billion Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train – which connects the two cities 142km (88 miles) apart in under an hour at speeds of up to 350km/h – is set to open to the public with great fanfare on Sunday.

Pre-trials conducted by the authorities indicated strong interest from Indonesians, who caused website outages after swarming online to grab 500 free tickets per day from September 17-30.

The government had also invited a who’s who of guests, including celebrities and social media influencers, ahead of the launch to experience the new train line named Whoosh (waktu hemat, operasi optimal, sistem handal), which translates to “saving time, optimal operation, reliable system”.

President Joko Widodo pictured in front of Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway trains in West Java on September 19. Photo: Bloomberg

Defence Minister Prabowo Subianto, a presidential hopeful in the 2024 election, described Whoosh as “extraordinary” after he took a ride with Widodo on September 19.

Indonesia’s China-backed high-speed railway: a ‘burden to carry’ for years to come?

After years of delays and budget blowouts, the US$7.2 billion Jakarta-Bandung high-speed train will be President Joko Widodo’s ‘costly legacy’ But with repayments, interest and maintenance costs, the belt and road project is unlikely to be profitable ‘even after the next three presidents’