Traffic management key to road chaos<\/p>\n
By Mitchell Mackey<\/p>\n
The answer to Jakarta's traffic problems is better traffic
\nmanagement and not a reduction in car sales, according to
\nGaikindo Secretary-General F. Soeseno.<\/p>\n
He said traffic problems were hurting the car's image and the
\nindustry was committed to working with the government to address
\nthe issue.<\/p>\n
\"Traffic management is essential, it must be the first
\npriority.\" Soeseno said.<\/p>\n
\"Some people, even government people, have commented that it
\nmay be better to slow down car production because there are too
\nmany cars.But this is not the solution.<\/p>\n
\"If we check the total population there are still less than
\nfour million cars in a country with 200 million people.<\/p>\n
\"We have less than one car for every 50 people and if you
\ncompare Indonesia with other countries you will see that we need
\ngreater car production not less,\" he said.<\/p>\n
Soeseno said that both the quality and quantity of traffic
\nmanagement had to be improved.<\/p>\n
He said the government's police and communication departments
\nmust work with the private sector as the solution cannot come
\nfrom just one side.<\/p>\n
\"It must be a combined effort, with the industry providing
\ninput on proposals to the government.<\/p>\n
\"The government is making every effort to keep Jakarta's roads
\nin good shape, but this situation happened a long time ago and
\nthere are no easy steps for us to take,\" Soeseno said.<\/p>\n
With better traffic management the pollution levels in cities
\nlike Jakarta will also decrease.<\/p>\n
However, the government has yet to act on the introduction and
\ndistribution of unleaded petrol, which would be considered to be
\nanother aid to pollution reduction.<\/p>\n
Soeseno said it could be another two or three years before the
\ngovernment had a clear policy on unleaded petrol.<\/p>\n
Leaded petrol is acknowledged as a significant public health
\nproblem, as its exhaust gases increase the lead content in the
\natmosphere.<\/p>\n
Over the past decade many countries have moved to phase out
\nleaded petrol by legislating for their car industries to sell
\nonly cars that have engines tuned for unleaded petrol together
\nwith exhaust devices called catalytic converters that filter out
\nmost toxic materials.<\/p>\n
However, Soeseno said Indonesia had not yet reached the point
\nwhere the government would legislate for mandatory use of
\nunleaded fuel.<\/p>\n
\"We have not reached the mandatory point yet,\" he said.<\/p>\n
One of the major problems delaying the introduction of
\nunleaded petrol was the absence of a national distribution
\nsystem.<\/p>\n
Four years ago Indonesia's petrol refiners cooperated with the
\ngovernment to introduce a leaded fuel called pre-mix which has
\nsignificantly reduced lead content.<\/p>\n
The Association of Indonesian Automotive Industries said that
\npre-mix has been a successful initiative and any government move
\nto insist that car companies sell only unleaded petrol vehicles
\nwould be useless if the fuel was not widely distributed first.<\/p>\n
However, petrol stations will not stock the fuel until there
\nis sufficient demand and consumers will not demand it until it is
\navailable.<\/p>",
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