Pulogadung problem-ridden bus terminal to be moved<\/p>\n
By Muninggar Sri Saraswati<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): When you arrive in Pulogadung bus terminal,
\nEast Jakarta, your first impression will be: Terrible! That is
\ncertain, no doubt about it.<\/p>\n
The largest bus station in the city is notorious for its
\ndisorganized state and crime.<\/p>\n
Head of Pulogadung bus station, Nadias Sjam, said that at
\nleast 1,200 city and inter-city public buses use the 3.5-hectare
\nterminal every day. During major holidays, such as Lebaran (the
\nMuslim holiday after Ramadhan), Christmas, and school holidays,
\nthe number can reach up to 2,000.<\/p>\n
Drivers park their buses wherever they like, not where the
\nmanagement has ruled, causing traffic jams both inside and
\noutside the terminal.<\/p>\n
Street vendors, selling many types of good, make the condition
\nworse. As they occupy almost half the road space, the buses can
\nonly trickle in and out of the bus terminal. With their presence,
\nthe terminal seems more like a traditional market than a bus
\nterminal.<\/p>\n
\"We have provided space for vendors in the terminal. However,
\nit could not accommodate all of them,\" he told The Jakarta Post
\nrecently, adding that the station management had tried to keep
\nthem in order, but they refused to comply with the regulations.<\/p>\n
Nadias said the disorganization partly resulted from the fact
\nthat the terminal could no longer accommodate the buses.<\/p>\n
\"More than 700 buses from towns in Java, Sumatra, Bali and
\nWest Nusa Tenggara, and over 500 public city buses here use the
\nterminal every day,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The situation now is very different from when it was first
\nopened in 1976. Nadias claimed that there were only several
\nhouses in the terminal's surroundings at that time, but now it is
\nsurrounded by many housing and industrial areas.<\/p>\n
\"The more housing complexes are built around here, the more
\ncrowded this terminal becomes,\" he told the Post.<\/p>\n
\"Passengers are not disciplined either. If they stopped taking
\nbuses from outside the terminal, I believe drivers would stop
\nlooking for passengers there,\" he remarked.<\/p>\n
Street vendor Bahtiar insisted that street vendors were not
\nthe only factor causing the disorganization.<\/p>\n
\"I think bus stations are always disorganized everywhere in
\nthis country, so what's the big deal?\" said Bahtiar, who claimed
\nthat he had been selling goods there for more than five years.<\/p>\n
Bahtiar, who sells clothes, refused to move since he could
\nattract more customers by selling goods outside the station than
\ninside.<\/p>\n
\"Look, most of the drivers park their buses outside here as
\nwell to get additional passengers,\" he remarked, adding that such
\nbehavior had worsened the traffic jams.<\/p>\n
Simarmata, a driver of a bus plying the Jakarta-Lampung route,
\nblamed the city administration for constructing only two-lane
\nterminal roads. He also claimed that the roads themselves were
\ntoo narrow.<\/p>\n
\"We stop here only for a moment, just in case there are still
\npassengers who want to travel on our buses,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, a passenger said that he would take a bus outside
\nif possible as those waiting outside would depart sooner than
\nthose inside the terminal.<\/p>\n
\"When a bus parks outside, it means it will depart soon,\"
\nAlfons, who was about to go to Bima in Sumbawa, West Nusa
\nTenggara, told the Post.<\/p>\n
Nadias admitted that the crime rate was also high in the
\nterminal. \"But crimes occur mostly at peak times, such as during
\nLebaran or Christmas,\" he remarked.<\/p>\n
Data from Pulogadung police station reveals that the number
\nof crimes can reach more than 35 cases per day, including
\npickpocketing and swindling. But most complaints are about
\npickpocketing.<\/p>\n
Wawan, a street vendor, said that crimes had become part of
\nthe station's daily life. \"Hoodlums can be found in almost every
\npart of the station,\" he said.<\/p>\n
He said criminals victimized not only passengers as they also
\naffected vendors like him. \"I have to pay (an illegal levy of)
\nsome Rp 1,500 (US 18 cents) per day to hoodlums, while drivers
\npay Rp 500,\" he explained.<\/p>\n
Given such a state of affairs, the city administration plans
\nto relocate the bus terminal to Pulogebang, about 10 kilometers
\nto the east, hoping that it can eliminate all the problems. Will
\nit succeed?<\/p>\n
Analysts have warned that relocating will only end up creating
\nthe same problems in a different place.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/pulogadung-problem-ridden-bus-terminal-to-be-moved-1447893297",
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