The rise of Whoosh as Indonesia’s newest high-speed rail has sparked growing confidence in the country’s ambition to transform long-distance travel. What began as a link between Jakarta and Bandung is now driving a much bigger dream. The government wants the line of Whoosh to stretch far beyond Surabaya and reach Banyuwangi, the easternmost point of Java.
Public enthusiasm has only strengthened that ambition. Throughout November 2025, demand for group travel on Whoosh climbed sharply. KCIC recorded a noticeable increase after launching its November Group Discount Promo, which offered up to 20 percent off for collective bookings. The impact was immediate. Average group trips jumped from about six per day in October to nearly twelve in November. Between 1–15 November alone, KCIC handled 177 groups with a total of 15,123 passengers.
The idea of extending the route had been voiced earlier by President Prabowo Subianto. When inaugurating the new Tanah Abang Station, he expressed his hope that the high-speed rail would not stop in Surabaya.
“Insyaallah, I ask not only Surabaya, Banyuwangi. Surabaya was in the old days, now it’s Banyuwangi,” he said, quoted on Tuesday (4/11).
KAI has responded with optimism. Its President Director, Bobby Rasyidin, said the company is ready to follow the President’s direction, especially with rising occupancy levels on the Jakarta–Bandung High-Speed Rail, also known as Whoosh.
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“There’s no issue with operating this high-speed rail because occupancy keeps increasing. The President has indicated that we must expand to Surabaya, even to Banyuwangi, so we will do it, we will carry it out,” Bobby said while in Beijing, quoted from Antara on Saturday (15/11/2025).
He also highlighted the performance of PT Kereta Cepat Indonesia China (KCIC), the operator of Whoosh. According to him, the company has delivered excellent results, while the project itself has boosted national pride as the first high-speed train in Southeast Asia. “It’s already clear that KCIC has no faults. In terms of national pride, we’ve risen. There aren’t many countries in the world with high-speed rail technology, and Indonesia is one of them,” he said.
Bobby added that several Eastern European countries and even the United States still do not have high-speed rail systems similar to Indonesia’s. He emphasized that this achievement is supported by solid operations. “Alhamdulillah we have a high-speed train. And as Mr. Dony (Oskaria) and our colleagues at Danantara always say, the company’s operations are profitable, which makes us confident and assured in running it,” he said.
With rising passenger numbers, strong government support, and growing national pride, Indonesia’s plan to push Whoosh all the way to Banyuwangi is gaining momentum. The project is now seen not only as a transportation breakthrough, but as a statement of how far the country wants to go with its modern rail network.
