BEKASI (15/07) – When being asked what is the most vital role of train travel? Maybe some people will answer machinist. But did you know there are officers other than the machinist who have an essential role when travelling on a train?

One of them is the Train Dispatchers (PPKA). Usually, they are at the station, receive and deliver the train when it is about to leave, and stop, until it arrives at the station.

In addition to requiring competent discipline and competence, PPKA must also have special skills to organize and take action to ensure the safety and order of train travel.

PPKA also deals with train shunting in the station area for local regulation and several regional stations, such as dispatching, receiving trains and serving trains directly.

In addition, PPKA also assigns tasks to signal houses, guarding crossing gates, maintaining money orders, and boarding officers to be actively involved in ensuring that the train journey runs safely and safely to its destination.

Based on the Regulation of the Minister of Transportation Number PM 5 of 2017 concerning Certification of Skills for Train Travel Organizers and Train Travel Controllers, a PPKA must meet competency standards consisting of:

1. Know and understand the provisions of laws and regulations related to the operation of Railways, Railway Facilities and Infrastructure;
2. Know, understand and master standard operating procedures for trains’ departure, arrival and halt;
3. Know, understand and master standard operating procedures for technical and administrative train travel (checking and filling out train reports);
4. Know, understand and master standard operating procedures for security and safety at the station;
5. Know, understand, master and read train travel charts, train notices, Telegram announcements and time lists and amendments thereto and/or Railway travel regulations;
6. Know, understand and master standard operating procedures for signalling, telecommunications and electricity in the operation of Railways;
7. Know, understand and master standard operating procedures for moving, crossing and preparing Railway operations;
8. Know, understand and master the work area; and
9. Knowledge, skills, and attitude in organizing train travel and controlling train travel.

The task of a PPKA is to maintain that the competency standards above can be carried out in accordance with the provisions that have been set.

To ensure a PPKA can carry out his duties properly and correctly, the Railway Testing Center, in this case, the Railway HR Testing Team, the Railway Testing Center, and the Directorate General of Railways are carrying out their duties to test PPKA test participants to obtain a certificate of expertise and identification according to their field.

The Competency Test, which was conducted in Bekasi in June 2022, was attended by PPKA test participants from PT Kereta Api Indonesia (PT KAI) and was carried out in several stages, such as:

1. Theory Test;
2. Practice Test;
3. Interview; and
4. Medical check-up.

If the participant has completed all stages of the Competency Test, the Railway HR Testing Team of the Railway Testing Center will directly input the result scores of each examinee on the available system. Then it will be forwarded to the Safety Directorate to be considered whether or not the Competency Test participants get certificate expertise and identification according to the field.

PR - Railway Testing Center