River transportation unlikely<\/p>\n
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The old pictures of romantic cruises on Jakarta's rivers back in
\nthe city's early years may remained an insert in history books as
\nexperts are skeptical about the revival of river transportation
\nin today's city as planned by Governor Sutiyoso's administration.<\/p>\n
\"What do you mean by water transportation? Bamboo-raft cruises
\nor what?\" commented Deputy Governor Fauzi Bowo jokingly.<\/p>\n
But he was not joking when expressing doubts that the project
\ncould be realized next year, saying that the officials assigned
\nhad yet to master the necessary technology to implement it.<\/p>\n
\"We don't have the technology ... It is too sophisticated and
\nwell complicated -- not as easy as you would imagine,\" said
\nFauzi, who holds doctor of civil engineering from the school of
\narchitecture of Kaiserlautern University in Germany.<\/p>\n
In a recent interview with The Jakarta Post, Fauzi was asked
\nto comment on the plan by the Jakarta Transportation Agency, as
\ninstructed by Sutiyoso, to develop the first route for river
\ntransportation on the West Flood Canal -- from the Manggarai
\nsluice gate, South Jakarta, to the Pejompongan sluice gate in
\nKaret, Central Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Fauzi explained that the plan could only work through the use
\nof locks between the rivers and the sluice ponds to enable
\nvessels to pass through safely.<\/p>\n
He added that the construction of boat terminals, docks and
\nturning places would also be a must.<\/p>\n
\"That's why the project will be too costly for us to afford
\nwith our cash-strapped city budget.\"<\/p>\n
It is not only Fauzi who has doubts about the ambitious
\nproject.<\/p>\n
Yanto, 45, who operates a small wooden ferry close to the
\nManggarai sluice gate, said the project was not realistic.<\/p>\n
\"This part of the Ciliwung river is only one meter deep. I
\ndon't think any large vessel or even medium-sized boat could pass
\nhere.\"<\/p>\n
Claiming to have years of experience as a fisherman, he said
\nsmall speedboats with a maximum capacity of six passengers were
\nan option, \"but the river would need to be at least three meters
\nor four meters deep\".<\/p>\n
In addition to the technical problems, the project could also
\nbe hindered by the dumping of household waste by riverbank
\nsquatters directly into the city's rivers, thus polluting and
\nreducing their depth.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso confirmed on Friday he had instructed the relevant
\nagencies to conduct a feasibility study on river transportation.<\/p>\n
\"The route is relatively short as we just want to introduce
\nthe new transportation system to residents,\" he said.<\/p>\n
The proposed four-kilometer route would represent the first
\nstage of a planned link up to the north coast, and would
\nconstitute part of an envisaged integrated transportation system.<\/p>\n
The project includes the construction of three boat halts at
\nManggarai, Jl. Sudirman (Dukuh Atas) and Karet, which would be
\nclose to railway stations and bus routes.<\/p>\n
A preliminary study conducted by the transportation agency
\nestimated that around 7,000 passengers per hour would make use of
\nriver transportation services during peak hours.<\/p>\n
Initially, the city had planned to develop a route from Pasar
\nBaru, Central Jakarta, to Ancol, North Jakarta, but changed its
\nmind because of the low bridges along the route and inadequate
\nwater volumes.<\/p>\n
I-Box<\/p>\n
Old Jakarta, 'little Venice'<\/p>\n
Since the 12th century, the Ciliwung river which divided
\nBatavia (old Jakarta) into eastern and western sections, served
\nas the main transportation system connecting the center of the
\nHindu Sunda Kingdom in Batutulis, Bogor, to Sunda Kalapa seaport.<\/p>\n
Adolf Heuken writes in his Historical sites of Jakarta that
\nSunda Kalapa was visited by vessels from southern Sumatra's
\nPalembang, Tanjungpura, Malaka, Makassar and Madura. Even traders
\nfrom as far away as India, South China and the Ryuku Islands (now
\npart of Japan) are said to have visited.<\/p>\n
In the Dutch colonial era, a number of canals were built,
\nincluding the Molenvliet (the canal the divides Jl. Hayam Wuruk
\nand Jl. Gajah Mada in West Jakarta) and the Mookervart (now Kali
\nPesing).<\/p>\n
J.J. de Vries writes in his Jakarta Tempo Doeloe that there
\nwas a tradition among the rich who owned plush resort houses
\nalongside the Jactraweg (now Jl. Pangeran Jayakarta) to visit
\neach others using boats docked at the rear of their villas along
\nthe Ciliwung river.<\/p>\n
\"They visited each other using boats rowed by their slaves
\nalong the river,\" de Vries writes.<\/p>\n
Molenvliet was built in 1649 by a Chinese captain, Phoa Bing
\nAm, to transport firewood to the factories near Glodok that
\nproduced, among others things, paper and gun powder. The canal
\nwas also utilized as a means of transportation.<\/p>\n
But as the city grew, the rivers became shallower due to
\ndumping.<\/p>\n
According to Heuken, Governor General van Diemen ordered the
\ndredging of the Mookervaart in 1681 and channeling into it of
\nwater from the Cisadane river in Tangerang in a bid to raise the
\ncanal's water levels.<\/p>\n
\"Unfortunately, the project only worsened the situation,\" he
\nwrites.<\/p>\n
Today, Jakarta has 12 rivers flowing through it besides the
\nmain Ciliwung river. Most of these rivers, however, are shallow
\nand severely polluted.<\/p>",
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