'Banning old bangers won't reduce pollution, congestion'<\/p>\n
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Restricting the number of older cars in Jakarta, as provided for
\nin the new draft bylaw on transportation, will not significantly
\nreduce vehicular emissions, say transportation observers.<\/p>\n
Ari Mohammad, an executive with the Swisscontact environmental
\norganization, said on Wednesday that surveys conducted by his
\norganization showed that there was no correlation between the age
\nof cars and emissions.<\/p>\n
\"Swisscontact has been holding annual surveys on the reduction
\nof vehicular emissions, and one of the conclusions is that
\nthere's no correlation between the age of the car and the
\nemissions it produces,\" Ari told members of the City Council's
\nCommission D for development affairs during a hearing.<\/p>\n
Banning old cars from Jakarta's roads is provided for under
\narticle 29 (2) of the draft bylaw on road, railway, river and
\nferry transportation, which has been proposed by the city
\nadministration.<\/p>\n
The draft bylaw is being discussed by the council and relevant
\nofficials from the administration. It is expected to be approved
\nin mid-August.<\/p>\n
Ari said that vehicular emissions depended on how car owners
\nmaintained their vehicles.<\/p>\n
Based on the surveys that had been conducted, he said, many
\nold cars aged over 10 years were still environmentally friendly
\nin terms of emissions as they were well-maintained.<\/p>\n
The survey also revealed that many cars produced since 2000
\nhad high emissions due to poor maintenance.<\/p>\n
City Transportation Agency chief Rustam Effendi had said
\nearlier that the banning of old cars from Jakarta's streets was
\ndesigned to improve air quality in the city.<\/p>\n
The policy is also aimed at reducing the number of private
\ncars, which has now reached some 1.5 million, compared to public
\ntransportation vehicles, which only number around 350,000.<\/p>\n
Another transportation observer, Jack Sumabrata of the Pelangi
\nFoundation, said that restricting the number of private cars
\nwould be required to reduce the city's notorious traffic jams,
\nparticularly during peak hours.<\/p>\n
However, he said, this could only be brought about by imposing
\nexpensive parking fees across the city or restricting private
\ncars on certain sections of road based on their registration
\nnumbers.<\/p>\n
Jack disagreed with the banning of older cars as the
\nadministration was not capable of providing proper public
\ntransportation services.<\/p>\n
He advised the administration to immediately improve public
\ntransportation as this was the key to resolving the city's
\ntransportation crisis.<\/p>\n
\"Good transportation is also the key to improving the quality
\nof Jakarta's air,\" Jack said.<\/p>\n
There has been a public debate on the possible banning of
\nolder cars since the 1980s, but this would be the first time that
\nsuch a ban would actually be included in a city bylaw.<\/p>",
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