Indonesia’s first mass rapid transit (MRT) rail system is on track to begin operating from March next year, giving 170,000 commuters a day the opportunity to avoid the capital’s horrendous traffic jams, according to the Straits Times. Few people, least of all MRT Jakarta boss William Sabandar, need any reminder of when the service begins: March 31, 2019 — 27 days before the legislative and presidential elections when the so-called “Infrastructure President” Joko Widodo seeks a second term, writes John McBeth for Asia Times. The MRT project is being financed by the central Government of Indonesia and the local Jakarta administration, as well as a $1.18bn soft loan from the Japanese Government, through the Japan International Cooperation Agency.