Busway boy Sutiyoso calls for sacrifice<\/p>\n
Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
Speaking from a podium with a traffic jam in the background in
\nthe middle of heavy rain on Thursday, Governor Sutiyoso called on
\nthe capital's better-off citizens to make sacrifices for those
\nfrom the lower-bracket income by supporting his ambitious busway
\nproject.<\/p>\n
"I realize that the busway project shows that we are taking
\nthe side of the 'little people'. Therefore, I call on the rich to
\nsacrifice for them by leaving your vehicles at home and taking
\nthe busway," he said, to the applause of more than 200 people
\ngathered at the South Plaza of the Bung Karno Sports Complex in
\nSenayan, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
The governor -- speaking at the launch of the busway system
\nthat stretches from Blok M in South Jakarta to Kota in West
\nJakarta and operates from 5 a.m. to 10 p.m. -- expressed concern
\nthat by 2014 traffic would come to a standstill throughout
\nJakarta if the rich kept buying new cars.<\/p>\n
"Every day Jakartans buy 138 new cars while the length of the
\nroads is reduced by 800 meters," he said, adding that around
\n600,000 vehicles from cities around Jakarta like Tangerang,
\nBekasi, Bogor and Depok entered the capital every day.<\/p>\n
"The extended and expanded three-in-one traffic policy from 7
\na.m. to 10 a.m. and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. along the busway
\ncorridor is the least that you can do (the rich)," he said.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso said that the Jakarta macro transportation system
\nwould materialize by 2010. The program consists of 14 busway
\ncorridors, a monorail connecting Tangerang in the west and Bekasi
\nin the east, a subway connecting the southern part of Jakarta to
\nthe north and river transportation.<\/p>\n
"In the future, people living in Greater Jakarta will use mass
\nrapid transportation to reach their workplace in the capital," he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso said that the busway was meant for the middle and
\nlower-income citizens of Jakarta and therefore he would not force
\nthe rich to take the busway.<\/p>\n
"If you still think the busway is not up to your standards, I
\ncan't force you to use it. Just keep on using your own private
\ncars if you enjoy being trapped in congestion for hours," he
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The city administration allocated Rp 120 billion last year and
\nRp 120 billion more this year for the busway project.<\/p>\n
The construction of a monorail -- to be built by PT Indonesian
\nTransit Central and Malaysian partner company M Trans Holding --
\nwill start this year and is expected to be completed in
\ntwo-and-a-half years with an investment of US$540 billion.<\/p>",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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