The access road construction from Yogyakarta International Airport (YIA) or Kulonprogo Airport to Yogyakarta, Solo, Borobudur Temple, Semarang, and other settlement centres will boost the number of domestic and international tourist visits in Yogyakarta and Central Java.

Nearing the full operation of YIA on 29 March 2020, constructions of the toll road and the railway that go directly to YIA terminal must be accelerated. So, the international airport will provide a new hope and a real impact to tourism and the economy of residents in the two provinces.

The future development machine of Yogyakarta and Central Java is the tourism sector as these two provinces are rich in culture and natural beauty. Determining Borobudur as one of the five super-priority tourism destinations in Indonesia will put Yogyakarta and Central Java on the international tourism destination radar. Not only does YIA support Adisutjipto Airport, which is overloaded, it also boosts the economy of Yogyakarta and Central Java through tourism. Until now, the number of international tourists that visit Yogyakarta is always below target. Hence, accessibility to and from YIA is crucial to make passenger movement easier.

That is the summary from the focus group discussion (FGD) on Key Success Factor for YIA Optimisation is Decent Accessibility, held by Investor Daily at Swissbell Boutique Yogyakarta on Friday (13/12) afternoon. The FGD, led by Investor Daily Editor in Chief Primus Dorimulu, was attended by Highways Directorate General of the Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Ministry Sugiyartanto, PT Angkasa Pura TAP (Sugiyartanto), AP I Faik Fami, Toll Road Regulatory Agency (BPJT) Vice President Koentjoro Pamboedi, and AP I Marketing and Services Director Devy Suradhhi.

Other sources include PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) Regional Head of Operations 6 Eko Purwanto, Network Structuring and Development Sub Directorate of Railway Directorate General of the Transportation Ministry Ikhsandy, Traffic and Railway Transportation Sub Directorate of Railway Directorate General of the Transportation Ministry Setyo, Representative for Traffic Service of Yogyakarta Regional Police Force Purwanta, Yogyakarta Provincial Development Planning Agency Head of Facilities and Infrastructure Aris Prasena, Kulon Progo Transportation Agency Head Lucius Bowo Pristyanto, Yogyakarta DAMRI General Manager Rahmat Santoso, Land Transportation Organisation (Organda) Secretary General Ateng Aryono, and public policy observers Edie Haryoto and Agus Pambagio.

Flights at Adisutjipto International Airport in Yogya will be fully moved to YIA by 29 March 2020. This airport in Yogya will still be operational, but limited, it will only be used for propeller airplanes, charter aircrafts, private jets, and military aircrafts.

Devy Suradji said that there would be 150 domestic flights and 8 international flights at YIA by 29 March 2020. Hence, during the summer, YIA will be operational for 24 hours and serve 184 domestic flights and 8 international flights.

The number of passengers in Adisutjipto International Airport has currently surpassed 8.4 million passengers yearly or 22,000 passengers daily, which is well above its capacity of only 1.8 million passengers yearly or 5,000 passengers daily. Aircraft movement has surpassed 85,100 yearly or an average of 170 aircraft movements daily, placing Adisutjipto International Airport as the most congested airport in the world. Every Friday to Sunday, potential passengers will find it difficult to purchase airplane tickets to Yogya,” Faik said.

YIA is built with a capacity of 20 million passengers yearly or 60,000 passengers daily. The airport, which has a runway of 2,350 metres, does not only target passengers from Yogyakarta, but also from Solo, Semarang, residences around Yogyakarta, Central Java, and eastern West Java. South Coast of Java, which is inferior to the North Coast of Java, is improving and will be a tourism area because of a toll road.

In the earlier stage, YIA was built to accommodate 14 million passengers yearly. YIA currently has a capacity of 20 million passengers yearly. This airport has been prepared to be expanded to accommodate 25 million passengers yearly.

With YIA, Yogyakarta and Central Java have four airports, namely Adisutjipto International Airport, YIA, Adisumarmo Solo Airport and Semarang Airport. All of the airports are under AP I management. “Yogayakarta and Central Java residents will have many alternatives,” Faik said.

Initial Impact

For the next three months, the construction of an access from and to YIA must be accelerated. Public policy observer Edie Haryoto said that YIA accessibility problems lie for the initial operation, not for the medium nor long terms. On 29 March 2020, when YIA will start operation, the toll road and the railway that go to the airport have not been built. “This is the problem,” he said.

Edie proposed PT KAI and DAMRI to optimise their fleets. Departure frequency must be improved to serve all commuters who need public transportation. “Transportation management is key. There must be a fixed schedule for the departure of trains and DAMRIs. Is it every hour? Every half an hour? Or every fifteen minutes?” the former President Director of PT KAI said.

For the middle to long terms, the toll road and the railway that go directly to YIA will be built by the government. However, PUPR Ministry, BPJT, Transportation Ministry, and Yogyakarta and Central Java Provincial Governments must prioritise the airport toll road and railway constructions to be on target.

Learning from the transportation system in developed countries, air transportation at YIA should be connected with land transportation to facilitate passenger movement. There are railway stations and busses at the airport terminal. Passengers from and going to YIA can choose their preferred public transportation mode. AP I needs to coordinate with PT KAI, DAMRI, and other bus companies to arrange a schedule that is in line with the flight schedules.

The city check-in and the departure locations from Yogyakarta Terminal and Adisutjipto Airport must be prepared. The same goes for the departure location from other cities to YIA. Passengers can check in at the departure location, then they just have to wait for the boarding process at the airport.

A public transportation tariff that follows the economy will be expensive, so a subsidy is required. Busses from Adisutjipto Airport and YIA will be operated by AP I through a partnership, so the public transportation access to YIA will be fully managed by AP I. Edie said that the solution was AP I being responsible for moving flights from Adisutjipto Airport to YIA. The subsidy process will be carried out until the railway and the toll road are fully operational, which may be carried out using the PSO (public service obligation) scheme or as a component of PSC (production sharing contract).

AP I Marketing and Services Director Devy Suradji said that the land transportation mode that can currently be used by YIA passengers were DAMRI busses, DAMRI minivans, SatelQu, taxis, and airport trains. Besides that, passengers can also use trains. The railway headway will be reduced, and the departure schedule of busses and trains will be adjusted to be in line with flight schedules.