As free as motorcyclists

Drivers in Jakarta need to be even more heedful and patient on the streets these days as they are full of speeding motorcyclists who invariably violate almost every traffic regulation that exists. Worse, most motorcyclists exhibit a strange habit of protesting or challenging car drivers who are just upset due to their dangerous behavior and maneuvers on the street.

Crossroads are now becoming danger zones as motorcyclists usually go straight through the red light, braving the flow of vehicles from the other direction. Drivers must be also more careful even driving in the correct lane as there are times when a speeding motorcycle suddenly appears from the opposite direction in the same lane.

Saturday night has become a special night out for motorcyclists who join clubs according to the make of their motorbike. They usually ride in a large group around the city, challenging the traffic by making a road block so cars cannot enter. The motorcyclists are usually angry if a driver honks the horn in protest over their behavior.

The city streets totaling less than 8,000 kilometers in length are crowded by at least 2.5 million motorcycles. A Jakarta-based daily reported the other day that Jakarta is fast becoming city of motorcycles. It's true that the growing number of motorcycles in the capital has become unexpectedly significant.

Financial reasons seem to motivate people to buy a motorcycle. An office boy of a private company said he had just bought a Japanese motorcycle, worth around Rp 12 million, with only Rp 250,000 as a down payment. Several showrooms in Jakarta even offer credit without a down payment.

Riding a motorcycle is much more economical than taking public transportation. With only two liters of fuel (worth less then Rp 5,000), a man living in the town of Tangerang, for instance, can ride to work and back. Motorcycles have also proven the most practical and stealthiest way to crisscross through the congested streets. Using a motorcycle to go to work is also seen as a way to be independent, as one can leave whenever one wants to without having to wait for public transportation, which is seen as uncomfortable and unsafe.

The problem now is the fact that motorcycles have become troublesome to other motorists. Motorcyclists' unpredictable maneuvers, which have frequently caused accidents -- some of them fatal -- pose a serious problem to drivers. No wonder car drivers were glad to hear about the proposal to make special lanes for motorcycles. So far, motorcycles have been restricted from entering the fast lanes on thoroughfares Jl. Sudirman and Jl. Thamrin.

It was Sr. Comr. Djoko Susilo, chief of the Jakarta Traffic Police division who proposed a special lane for motorcycles. The motorcycle lanes are expected to make the traffic more orderly and at the same time help traffic police uphold regulations. "The small fines fail to deter traffic violators and yet make motorcyclists repeat the offense," said Djoko.

While official discussions among relevant institutions have yet to take place and a public debate on the plan is not in the minds of city decision makers, Head of Jakarta Ground Transportation Agency Rustam Effendi has expressed disagreement with the proposed motorcycle lane. He argues that there is no space for the lanes. The existing streets would become narrower once the motorcycle lanes are made, he argues.

Motorcycle lanes are actually only part of a grand scenario to make Jakarta traffic more humane. Motorcycle lanes will mean nothing if law enforcement remains limp.

As many say that the damage has been done, the only remedy to the existing chaotic transportation system in Jakarta is the establishment of an appropriate mass rapid transit (MRT) system. However, the administration prefers toll road construction to establishing an MRT system. The city managers are obviously unaware that constructing new toll roads will only let motorcycles flock the existing non-toll roads.

While Jakartans are puzzled by the administrator's policy on transportation, they might have been more surprised by Governor Sutiyoso's response to the significant increase in the number of motorcycles. "I am concerned (gelisah)," he was quoted as saying by a local daily. Gelisah can mean worried, anxious, upset, bothered or disturbed. Whatever the governor meant by that, he has done nothing to curb the increasing number of motorcycles.

Cooperation is needed with relevant (government) institutions to control the number of motorcycles, and fines should have been given on the street once motorcyclists started to be more aggressively defy regulations.

This all means that the city managers have failed to demonstrate a proper vision in solving public transportation problems. And Jakartans will still face the hardship of surviving wild traffic conditions in the next decade, whereas the administrator may just say, "I am bothered and concerned".