Jakarta. The Jakarta-Bandung high-speed rail has caught the attention of Malaysians as data showed 43 percent of the foreign passengers had come from the close neighbor.

The $7.3 billion rail project had recorded 528,000 foreign passengers so far. As many as 225,000 are Malaysians, according to Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC), the transport company that operates the rail network. KCIC data also indicated a positive trend in September. Malaysians who used the rail known as Whoosh could reach more than 750 passengers a day. KCIC attributed this trend to the long weekend momentum in both Malaysia and Indonesia. Friday (Sep. 5) will be a public holiday for the two Muslim majority countries.

“Foreigners consider Whoosh not just as a mode of transport. The rail network has become part of their tourism experience when traveling in Indonesia,” KCIC’s general manager corporate secretary Eva Chairunisa said Thursday.

The statistics bureau BPS recently revealed that foreign tourism numbers had jumped 13.01 percent year-on-year in July, reaching 1.48 million arrivals. About 14.32 percent came from Malaysia. However, the number of Malaysian travelers had slightly dropped 0.28 percent compared to the previous month.

Amidst growing ridership, Whoosh is facing a looming hefty Chinese debt. The project mainly relied on Chinese loans. Indonesian sovereign fund Danantara is currently working on a debt restructuring plan.

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