700 motorists ticketed per day in `Zebra' drive
JAKARTA (JP): Police said that around 700 motorists were ticketed every day in and around the city during their ongoing one month traffic operation code-named Operasi Zebra 1994 which began on Monday.
"During the first three days of the operation, a total of 2,085 traffic violators were ticketed. More than half were fined for disobeying traffic signs," said Col. Soeroso, the head of the Traffic Directorate of the City Police Headquarters.
More than 1,500 personnel, including the police, military, Traffic and Land Transportation Control Agency (DLLAJ), military police of the Armed Forces (POM-ABRI) and state-owned toll road firm PT Jasa Marga, are taking part in the operation being held simultaneously throughout the country.
Under the new fine scale, traffic offenders can be fined between Rp 15,000 and Rp 150,000, depending on the classification of their infractions. Under the new ticketing system, violators are required to choose one of three given alternatives.
The first option is that a violator acknowledges his offense and pays the fine at a nearby branch of the state-owned Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI). The second is that a violator admits his offenses as stated by the ticketing officer and attends court hearings in person, paying whatever fine the judge determines. The final alternative is for a violator to refuse to admit his guilt and to only pay the fine once a decision has come from the court.
Lt. Col. A. Latief Rabar, a spokesman for the City Police, said that 87 percent of the 2,085 traffic offenders netted during the first three days of the operation chose the first alternative while the remaining 13 percent chose the second.
"None of them chose the third option," Soeroso said.
He said 538 offenders were ticketed on the first day, 776 on the second day and 771 on the third day.
During the three day operation, the joint team impounded three vehicles, seized 350 driving licenses and some 220 vehicle license documents (STNK).
Accidents
Soeroso said an average of three accidents were reported every day during the operation. "So far, only one person has died in traffic accident."
He gave no record, however, about the number of accidents typical before the operation.
Besides disobeying traffic signs, the joint team also reported other types of violations for speeding, driving without required documents, such as driving licenses and vehicle ownership documents and for exceeding passenger capacity limits.
The operation, which will last on Oct. 26, was launched as part of the authorities' concerted efforts to enforce the controversial Traffic Law No. 14 issued in 1992 which imposes heavy fines against traffic violators. The law mandates a maximum fine of Rp 6 million.
In a related development, the City Police also announced yesterday that they have seen a significant increase in the number of people applying for driving licenses in the past few days.
"The number of people applying for driving licenses has risen from 1,800 to 2,000 per day since the first day of the Operation Zebra 1994," said Lt. Col. Anton Bahrul Alam, the head of the Driving License Unit
About 35 percent were applying for a new driving license, another 35 percent for renewal of documents and the remaining were replacing their old, worn-out ones.
Officially, an applicant has to spend at least Rp 65,000 for a driving license. Many, however, decide to use middlemen to process their documents in order to avoid police bureaucracy, even though they end up paying double the amount. (bsr)