By Ahmad Pathoni,

JAKARTA, June 6 (Reuters) - Indonesia's capital launched a river taxi service along a polluted stretch of water on Wednesday, part of efforts to ease legendary traffic woes in the teeming tropical city of nine million people.

Two ferries will ply a 1.4-km (1-mile) route on weekends for the first phase of the project.

At the launch, the white-painted ferries with a capacity of 28 passengers navigated through garbage-clogged brown water, at times criss crossing to avoid objects floating in the 20 metre (65 ft) wide Ciliwung river.

Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso, eager to leave a positive legacy when his second term ends in August, said he was confident that the project would be a success.

Under his leadership, Jakarta has built TransJakarta Busway, a sleek bus service running along a network of dedicated lanes.

"I hope the story of Waterway will be like Busway. You can say negative things about it now, but in the end you will be happy," he told reporters at the launch site.

The head of Jakarta transportation department, Nurachman, said the number of ferries would be increased gradually but for the moment the service was only targeting casual travellers.

"At the moment the ferries will only operate on Saturday and Sunday but later they will serve on workdays," he said. The price of one journey will be 1,500 rupiah (17 U.S. cents)

The low-lying capital has a network of rivers and canals, built by the Dutch before independence in 1945, although many would be barely navigable due to the rubbish discarded in them.

Asked about the problem of garbage, Nurachman said: "It's much cleaner than a week ago. We ask people not to throw garbage into the river because it is for their good."

Jakarta, which has around 9 million people living within its city limits and another five million in sprawling suburban districts, is plagued by traffic problems.

Roads are clogged from morning till night with cars, motorcycles and ageing smoke-belching regular buses.

Unlike other major Asian cities, it has no subway or light railway services.

A monorail system is also under construction, but the project has suffered from funding problems, partners dropping out and general red-tape.

A mass rapid transit system in the capital is also ultimately planned at an estimated cost of 9 trillion rupiah ($1 billion). ((Editing by Ed Davies and Sanjeev Miglani; ahmad.pathoni@reuters.com; Reuters Messaging: ahmad.pathoni.reuters.com; +6221 384-6364)) ($1=8790 Rupiah)

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