The ins and outs of three-in-one<\/p>\n
The restricted traffic zone system in Jakarta's central area,
\npopularly called the "three-in-one" system, will soon be phased
\nout because newly appointed Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso considers
\nit as ineffective in easing congestion. But in the absence of any
\nviable alternative, the system has its staunch supporters. This
\narticle looks into the controversy. A brief history of the three-
\nin-one system appears on Page 9.<\/p>\n
By Ahmad Junaidi and Edith Hartanto<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): Fifteen-year old Teguh has been standing on the
\nsidewalk of Jl. Satrio, in the Kuningan district, for a few
\nminutes. When a red Kijang van approaches him, he vanishes.<\/p>\n
Teguh is a seasoned "jockey", a term to describe people who
\noffer themselves as passengers to motorists trying to beat the
\nsystem that requires a minimum of three passengers in a car.<\/p>\n
He says the red Kijang is driven by a police officer preying
\non jockeys, to catch them in the act, so to speak.<\/p>\n
Teguh says he has already had to deal with the law several
\ntimes in the two years since he began this profession.<\/p>\n
"Because I'm often arrested, I can recognize a car driven by
\nan undercover police officer," he tells The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
Police would either take him to the Kedoya social service
\ncenter in West Jakarta, or the Cipayung social service office in
\nEast Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Either one was not fun.<\/p>\n
Those who are caught during a given day are given a brief
\nlesson in discipline such as marching before they are released.
\nAnd it is a strict military discipline that is imposed at these
\nsocial service agencies.<\/p>\n
"Once I came home with bruises on my arms. The officers beat
\nme because I turned left when they told me to turn right during
\none march," Teguh says.<\/p>\n
The disciplinary measures seem hardly effective, just as the
\nthree-in-one system seems ineffective in easing Jakarta's
\nnotorious traffic congestion.<\/p>\n
Teguh has continued to work the streets in spite of his
\nrepeated arrests. He reports that he earns at least Rp 2,000 to
\nRp 3,000 a day. "Sometimes, a generous driver gives me Rp 5,000
\nor Rp 10,000," he recalls.<\/p>\n
Lawyer Henri Yosodiningrat claims the arrests on jockeys are
\nbaseless.<\/p>\n
"Disturbing public order? Who are you kidding? These kids help
\npeople. They are working," Henry tells the Post.<\/p>\n
Police blame the jockeys for undermining the three-in-one
\npolicy and defend their operation to round up these jockeys. In
\nthe last five years, at least 8,000 of them have been rounded up
\nand disciplined although none have been charged with a crime.<\/p>\n
"These jockeys make the policy ineffective," Jakarta Traffic
\nPolice Chief Col. Fachrudin Bakar says.<\/p>\n
Jakarta Police Spokesman Lt. Col. E. Aritonang warns that some
\nof these young jockeys are criminals, recalling that officers
\noften find credit cards and handphones from the netted jockeys.<\/p>\n
Privately, many officers who administer the policy in the
\nstreets, find the system wanting and arresting the jockeys an
\nunpleasant task.<\/p>\n
"As law enforcers, we are faced with a dilemma. We only know
\nthat our chief job is to ensure that traffic runs smoothly,"
\nSuparman (not a real name), a 33-year-old police officer, says.<\/p>\n
He says the police are fighting a losing battle because
\ncongestion has continued. "As soon as the restriction is lifted
\nafter 10 a.m., the roads are congested again," Suparman says.<\/p>\n
As motorists are settling down to the policy after five years,
\nand as thousands of jockeys have found ways of profiting from it,
\nnow Governor Sutiyoso has decided to do away with it.<\/p>\n
Sutiyoso, however, has not come up with any viable
\nalternative. Nor, it seems, has anyone who supports the phasing
\nout of the system.<\/p>\n
"We've learned that the three-in-one policy is not effective,"
\nDeputy Governor TB.M. Rais says. "It is no longer suitable for
\nJakarta's traffic situation. We are looking for alternatives."<\/p>\n
The three-in-one policy still has its staunch supporters,
\nwithin and outside the administration.<\/p>\n
J.P. Sepang, head of the City Land Transportation Agency says
\nthe policy should be retained until a better replacement is
\nfound.<\/p>\n
"The three-in-one concept is good. The presence of jockeys is
\nthe problem. Don't throw the concept away just because we cannot
\ncontrol the excesses."<\/p>\n
Wiyogo Atmodarminto, who was Jakarta's governor in 1992 when
\nthe policy was launched, says the chief objective of the policy
\nwas to encourage people to leave their cars behind and use public
\ntransportation.<\/p>\n
"Jakarta is already too crowded with too many cars. There is
\nsimply not enough roads for all the cars in Jakarta," Wiyogo
\nsays.<\/p>\n
Currently, Jakarta, home to 11 million people in the daytime
\nand nine million people during the night, has been crowded with
\n2,165,200 vehicles roaming the 5,908 kilometers of roads.<\/p>\n
"Whatever the administration does, there will always be
\ntraffic congestion. That is why the city must start to control
\nthe number of cars being driven in the city at any one time," he
\nsays.<\/p>\n
"That's why I think the three-in-one policy is still
\nrelevant," he says, adding that the policy could be effective
\nwith better and stricter enforcement.<\/p>\n
"Many cars with less than three passengers still pass the
\npolice check points and get away with it. This encourages people
\nto violate the rule.<\/p>\n
"Many who are stopped simply pay bribe money. This kind of
\naction must be stopped," says Wiyogo, who served as Jakarta's
\ngovernor from 1987 to 1992.<\/p>\n
He admits that the administration has to make a tough decision
\non how to deal with the jockeys. "The municipality has to decide
\nwhich is more important, solving the traffic problem or being
\nlenient toward jockeys?" he says.<\/p>\n
The long-term solution, he concludes, is an improvement in
\npublic transportation facilities.<\/p>\n
Wiyogo bluntly rejects the proposal to restrict the main
\nthoroughfares to cars with stickers, available for a fee.<\/p>\n
This is the system applied in Singapore.<\/p>\n
"I resisted that idea when I was the governor because it is
\nnot effective and could lead to forgery or corruption," Wiyogo
\nsays.<\/p>\n
"And it would widen the gap between the rich and the poor. The
\nsticker would have to be expensive, because it would be used to
\nlimit the number of vehicles coming to the restricted area," he
\nsays.<\/p>\n
Sepang also points to a potential legal problem.<\/p>\n
"Law No.13\/1980 bars the conversion of a public road into a
\ntoll road without a presidential decree," he says.<\/p>\n
Surjadi Soedirdja, who was succeeded by Sutiyoso as governor
\nlast month, says that it is normal if the three-in-one policy is
\nbeing reevaluated now.<\/p>\n
"Without evaluation, we will not know if the system really
\nworks," he says.<\/p>\n
But he refrained from further comment on the controversy. "I'm
\nnot a governor anymore, it's not my business anymore. Please ask
\nPak Sutiyoso," he says.<\/p>\n
Bun Yamin Ramto, an urban planning expert, claims that
\nJakarta's traffic congestion could be eased if people --
\nmotorists, pedestrians and traders -- were more disciplined in
\nusing roads.<\/p>\n
"Many sidewalk vendors throughout Jakarta trade on the
\nstreets. They don't respect regulations.<\/p>\n
Reckless drivers, pedestrians and passengers, all of them,
\nalso contribute to the list of violations of traffic
\nregulations," he says.<\/p>\n
The three-in-one system could be retained and made effective
\nwith a more rigorous campaign for greater discipline among road
\nusers, he says.<\/p>\n
Jakarta is crowded with people who come from every part of the
\ncountry. He concludes that "people here have different cultures
\nand habits that must be adapted to the rules of living in a big
\ncity."<\/p>",
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