PT Kereta Api Indonesia (Persero) (, abbreviated as PT KAI or simply KAI) is the public railway operator in Indonesia. It is state-owned and pays track access charges. Its headquarters are located in Bandung, West Java. In 2019, KAI carried 429 million passengers and 47.2 million tonnes of cargo.
History
Kereta Api Indonesia is the latest of a long line of successive state railway companies dating from Dutch colonial days. On August 27, 1863, Indonesia's first railway company was named Nederlandsch-Indische Spoorweg Maatschappij (NIS). The colonial government of Dutch-East Indies gave the concession to W. Poolman, Alex Frazer and E.H. Kol on August 28, 1862. Samarang-Tanggung (Grobogan) was its initial route. The ground breaking was in Kemijen village, Semarang by L.A.J.W. Baron Sloet van de Beele on June 17, 1864. The line opened on August 10, 1867 was Batavia (Jakarta) – Buitenzorg (Bogor) and Samarang – Vorstenlanden (Surakarta and Yogyakarta). They faced big losses and faced bankruptcy. The colonial government assisted the company by forming Staatsspoorwegen, a state-owned company on April 6, 1875. Their route stretched from Buitenzorg to Soerabaja. The government established Deli Spoorweg Maatschappij in North Sumatra, to transport rubber and tobacco around the Deli area.
In 1939, the total operational trackage was (it is unclear whether dual gauge tracks were counted once or twice).
Indonesia gained independence in 1953. The various railway systems (except the Deli Railway Company) were combined into Djawatan Kereta Api Republik Indonesia (DKARI, Railways Service of the Republic of Indonesia). Non-state railway systems in Java retained their formal existence until 1958, when all railway lines were nationalised, including Deli, thereby creating the Perusahaan Negara Kereta Api (PNKA, State Railways Corporation) on 25 May 1963. On 15 September 1971 PNKA was changed to Perusahaan Jawatan Kereta Api (PJKA, the Railway Service Corporation).
Much of the branch lines constructed in the colonial era were lifted up or abandoned in the 1980s.
Railway operations in Indonesia were at one time regulated by Act No. 13 of 1992 on Railways. This legislation stated that the government operates railways (arts. 4 and 6), delegates operations to an operating body [then the Perumka, later PT Kereta Api] (art. 6) and provides and maintains railway infrastructure (art. 8). Private companies were allowed to co-operate in operation of railways (art. 6).
In On 2 January 1991, PJKA changed to Perusahaan Umum Kereta Api (Perumka, the Railways Public Corporation), and as of 1 June 1999 converted into joint-stock company PT Kereta Api (Persero) (PT KA, Indonesian Railways Company JSC). In May 2010, it became PT Kereta Api Indonesia (Persero) (PT KAI).
Electric locomotives were always a minority, and no new electric locomotives were acquired until the 1970s. However, electric multiple units have been imported since 1976 for the Jabotabek commuter urban transport, which was spun off from KAI in August 2008.
After changing the rail between Purwosari station and Wonogiri station and the bridges with R42 (37 kilometres), so line between Sangkrah station, Solo and Wonogiri became served by heavy electric diesel locomotives.
On 3 May 2011 the company trialed a cargo train from Cikarang Dry Port to Surabaya. In December, a memorandum of understanding was signed between KAI and Bombardier Transportation. The project established final assembly of diesel-electric TRAXX Asia Locomotives in Surabaya, East Java for export and domestic use.
In 2012, KAI and GE Transportation signed a Memorandum of Understanding to cooperate on train services. All services are provided locally by Indonesian workers. GE runs a traction motor remanufacturing center to serve all ASEAN countries.
In 2012, Indonesian Railways allocated Rp20 billion (US$2.2 million) to restore and renovate 20 heritage sites and historical railways on Java and Sumatra.
of the northern coast area lines of Java were double tracked in May 2014, followed by the completion of a double tracking project on the south coast by 2015. On 8 June 2015 the Duri-Tangerang double track project was inaugurated for KA Commuter Jabodetabek, but it can be also used for airport trains. Construction began in early 2015 to connect Cikarang Dry Port and Tanjung Priok Port to ease traffic.
The first trackage project of the Trans-Sulawesi Railway with a length of 143 kilometres from Makassar to Pare-pare was completed in 2017. The train began service in 2018 with trackage wider than in Java to accommodate more weight and speed.