STORY: Indonesian president takes ride on Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway
DATELINE: Sept. 14, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:47
LOCATION: Jakarta
CATEGORY: SOCIETY/POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of Joko Widodo taking passenger train of Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR)
2. SOUNDBITE (Indonesian): JOKO WIDODO, Indonesian President
3. various of Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR)

STORYLINE:

Indonesian President Joko Widodo took a ride Wednesday on the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR), a landmark project under the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative.

Speaking highly of the efforts made by Chinese and Indonesian workers, Widodo said the Jakarta-Bandung HSR would officially start commercial operation in early October.

Widodo described the train-taking experience as smooth and comfortable. He expressed his hope for the Indonesian people to use public transportation more frequently to ease the traffic pressure between Jakarta and Bandung.

SOUNDBITE (Indonesian): JOKO WIDODO, Indonesian President
"I've inspected the high-speed train project for four times, but this is the first time that I took a ride on it. It's comfortable. At a speed of 350 km/h, I feel comfortable, either sitting or walking. It's fast. We hope that there will be a shift from using private cars to high-speed railway, so that traffic jams on the roads and pollution can be reduced."

The Jakarta-Bandung HSR connects Indonesia's capital Jakarta and West Java's provincial capital Bandung.

With a design speed of 350 km per hour, the railway spanning 142.3 km will cut the journey between the two cities from over three hours to around 40 minutes.

It is the first overseas high-speed railway project that fully uses Chinese railway systems, technology, and industrial components.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Jakarta.
(XHTV)