In-Depth | Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway to start commercial operation in October: What does this mean?
"So fast, I haven't even finished my cup of tea." Indonesian President Joko said when he arrived in Tianjin from Beijing by high-speed rail nine years ago.
Beijing and Tianjin are about 140 kilometers apart, which is equivalent to the distance between Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia, and Bandung, a famous tourist city. But at that time, it took three or four hours to get from Jakarta to Bandung, whether by train or car.
Today, 9 years later, the situation has changed. It only takes 40 minutes to drive from Jakarta to Bandung. “It’s very comfortable whether sitting or standing.” Jokowi said with emotion when he tried riding the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail in mid-September. “This is what civilization looks like.”
This is also a change brought about by the joint construction of the “Belt and Road” between China and Indonesia. On October 1, the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, the flagship project of the “Belt and Road Initiative” that was brewed in 2014, will start commercial operations. This is an important node and a new starting point, marking that Indonesia and even Southeast Asia have entered the rapid high-speed rail era.
In early September, Indonesian businessman Hong Peicai received an invitation to test ride on the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail. "When the speed increased to 350 kilometers per hour, I couldn't calm down. I felt proud, excited, grateful, surprised, and excited all intertwined." He wrote an article in Indonesian media.
Hong Peicai became involved with the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway in November 2014. He was a member of Jokowi’s delegation to China. He remembered that Jokowi said after taking the high-speed train back to Beijing from Tianjin, "I want to build a high-speed rail in Indonesia with this speed and this technology."
Now, the high-speed rail dream of Jokowi and the Indonesian people has finally come true.
"The Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail plan started in the first term of the Jokowi administration. It is a flagship project that actively aligns China's '21st Century Maritime Silk Road' initiative with Indonesia's 'Global Maritime Pivot' strategy, focusing on infrastructure connectivity. "Xu Liping, a researcher at the Institute of Asia-Pacific and Global Strategy, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, pointed out.
For a long time, Indonesia's economic development has been hampered by poor infrastructure. As a country with a thousand islands, maritime and air transportation have always been the focus of Indonesia's development. However, domestic railways are relatively backward, and most of the only railways were built during the colonial period.
"The progress of railway construction is particularly slow. Traffic congestion causes economic losses of up to 6.5 billion U.S. dollars every year." Xu Liping said that for this reason, the Joko administration has made infrastructure construction a priority for the government, and the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway is an important part. Indonesia hopes to improve transportation conditions, change the business environment, and boost economic development. China attaches great importance to this cooperation project.
"Indonesia has a large population and relatively flat terrain. Java Island, where the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway is located, is the most developed region in Indonesia, accounting for only 7% of Indonesia's territory, and accounting for nearly 60% of the country's population and GDP." Fudan University's "One Belt, One Road" Huang Renwei, executive vice president of the Institute of Global Governance, pointed out that the east-west transportation connecting the island has broad market prospects and is of great significance to Indonesia. At that time, China's high-speed rail technology was becoming increasingly mature and efficient, and its proposed project costs and payback cycles were better than those of other countries. After comprehensive consideration, the Indonesian government chose to cooperate with China.
"We feel very comfortable in the car, and you can see how fast it is on the electronic screen." Mohammad Risman, a 48-year-old private enterprise employee from Jakarta, said when he and his wife tried riding the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail.
According to the design, the train is equipped with power sockets, TV screens and other facilities, and stops at four stations throughout the journey. Among them, Halim is the first stop, located in the capital Jakarta, and Dekarur is located in the tourist city of Bandung. The other two stations are located near the Indonesian industrial base, surrounded by many foreign companies and industrial parks.
Although it only stops at four stations, the construction of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway is far more difficult than people imagine.
Geographically, Indonesia is located on the southeastern edge of Eurasia, with mountains and seas connected, and beautiful scenery. However, the geological conditions are complex and diverse, and earthquakes occur frequently. The Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway line covers volcanoes, landslides, active fault zones, etc., all of which bring difficulties to railway construction.
In order to cope with the complex geological and climatic conditions along the line, builders from the two countries conducted careful research and built 56 bridges and 13 tunnels along the entire line. Two of the tunnels are regarded as rare cases with the most complex geology and the most difficult construction. Industry insiders say that it is precisely because of these challenges that the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway has allowed other countries to see more possibilities for high-standard cooperation in connectivity.
"Both parties inevitably encountered various difficulties during the construction process, including both engineering factors and non-engineering factors." Huang Renwei pointed out that the smooth progress of the project stems from the common people and rules, as well as from the two governments. of mutual cooperation. Indonesia is relatively similar to China in terms of system. Its land and railway companies are both state-owned, and cooperation and communication with Chinese companies are relatively smooth.
In addition, "Indonesia also learned some of China's experience and models in developing high-speed rail." Huang Renwei recalled the scene when he visited the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail construction site a few years ago. New towns and economic development zones were being built along the high-speed rail, aiming to create " High-speed rail economic belt.” Although the construction has not yet been completed, the land has been leased and funds have been withdrawn. Indonesian companies have also tasted the benefits of cooperation.
"This is China's first high-speed rail project in which the entire system, all factors, and the entire industrial chain have been implemented overseas. As Chinese enterprises and Chinese standards 'go out', how to achieve cross-cultural exchanges is particularly important." Xu Liping pointed out that in this process China proposes a "China plan" that adapts to the needs of the other party based on local characteristics, making the high-speed rail characterized by international standards and high environmental adaptability.
As for the main body of construction, the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway adopts a joint venture model combining the government and commercial enterprises.
In terms of technical standards, the high-speed railway is constructed using Chinese standards throughout the entire process, but many cutting-edge technologies and technical talents have been localized. The high-speed railway has a large amount of tunnel construction, and Indonesia lacks talents in this area. China has specially trained a group of technical workers for tunnel excavation to meet project needs.
In terms of design plan, the high-speed rail body adopts the color of the Indonesian flag and incorporates the texture pattern of the rare Indonesian animal Komodo dragon, highlighting local characteristics in every detail.
"The smooth progress of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway not only reflects China's commitment to its promises and its commitment to what it says, but also highlights the deepening mutual trust between the two countries," Xu Liping said.
"When the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail is built, what will Indonesia learn?" Hong Peicai asked after taking a test ride on the high-speed rail.
Based on the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway, the Indonesian government is targeting the entire Java Island and plans to build a high-speed railway with a length of more than 800 kilometers.
Indonesian public opinion believes that the high-speed rail will have a huge economic impact. It will not only greatly facilitate the flow of people and goods between the two cities, provide more than 30,000 local job opportunities, but also cultivate downstream industries in Indonesia through the sharing of knowledge and technology. High-quality talents will drive business development and tourism development along the route.
"The Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway will undoubtedly promote Indonesia's economic prosperity, and will also further promote the integrated development of China and ASEAN, and show the world the prospects for cooperation between China and the vast number of southern countries with shared interests and a shared future." Huang Renwei said from the perspective of national, regional and global Observe at all levels.
At the national level, the high-speed railway line is Indonesia's economic core area. The opening of the high-speed railway will increase the speed of local personnel and material circulation, attract more external investment, and promote economic development.
At the regional level, Indonesia is the leader in ASEAN, and the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway will attract other Southeast Asian countries to follow suit, thereby building an ASEAN railway network and further promoting the integration of China and Southeast Asia.
Huang Renwei specifically mentioned three railways on the Indochina Peninsula. At present, the China-Laos railway is being extended to Thailand after its completion. It is planned to extend from Thailand to Malaysia and Singapore. This is the China-Indochina Peninsula Corridor. This corridor will in turn promote the construction of two other railways, namely the China-Myanmar Corridor from Kunming, China to Yangon, Myanmar, and the China-Vietnam Railway from China to Hanoi, Vietnam, and then to Ho Chi Minh City. These three Sichuan-shaped railways, as well as potential railway lines on Java Island in Indonesia and two other large islands, will form a complete railway network in ASEAN. This will rewrite the past situation of fragmented ASEAN transportation, connect the region's markets, industrial chains, supply chains, and capital chains with China, and further promote the integration of Southeast Asia and China.
At the global level, ASEAN is one of the most important sectors in the joint construction of the “Belt and Road” initiative. Taking Southeast Asia as a window, the effects of integrated development between China and southern countries will be fully demonstrated.
"In the past three years, ASEAN has rapidly become China's largest trading partner. China's industrial transfer, industrial chain extension, and industrial park construction in ASEAN have developed rapidly. The economic interdependence of both parties has reached the highest level in the world." Huang Renwei pointed out that because In this way, ASEAN is unwilling to choose sides between China and the United States, which has the effect that the degree of geoeconomic integration between China and ASEAN has exceeded the degree of geopolitical integration between the United States and ASEAN.
"This is a typical prospect of cooperation between China and southern countries with related interests and a shared destiny." Huang Renwei said that in the future, the effects of cooperation between China and more South Asian countries, Middle Eastern countries, African countries, and Latin American countries will gradually appear like ASEAN. This is also a manifestation of the “Belt and Road Initiative” as the economic foundation of countries in the “Global South”.
Xu Liping believes that the significance of the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway goes beyond economic scope.
From a Chinese perspective, it embodies the core concept of the CCP's "One Belt, One Road" initiative of consultation, joint construction and sharing, and demonstrates China's commitment and efficiency to the outside world.
From an Indonesian perspective, it will force the improvement of urban transportation in Indonesia's two major cities, allowing public transportation to achieve a qualitative leap. It will also drive the upgrading of the industrial belts along the route and enhance the confidence of foreign investment. In addition, it will also change the way Indonesians travel, promote green travel, and bring about a revolutionary change.
From a regional and global perspective, although the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway is an isolated case, it is an important example of China's South-South cooperation. It is difficult for some Western multinational companies to promote large-scale infrastructure projects in developing countries. Chinese-funded companies have overcome difficulties, innovated cooperation models with local companies, and explored localization solutions, providing examples for other projects along the Belt and Road in the future.
"More importantly, this kind of cooperation adheres to the spirit of mutual respect, equal treatment, and win-win cooperation. It is not targeted at third parties, is not exclusive, has no geopolitical purpose, and is in line with the fundamental interests of both parties." Xu Liping said that this kind The cooperation model undoubtedly provides a good example and reference for cooperation among the "Global South".
