Authorities fight over right to ticket three-in-one violators

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Despite the fact that they have ticketed motorists over the past year, the city police and the Jakarta transportation agency are still fighting over who has the authority to book three-in-one violators.

Citing Law No. 14/1992, city traffic police deputy chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Kanton Pinem insisted on Friday that only his office had the authority to ticket motorists that violate the policy.

However, Jakarta transportation agency deputy head Nurrahman, citing Jakarta Bylaw No. 12/2003, argued that they too had the right to book traffic violators, including those who do not abide by the three-in-one policy.

"Based on Law No. 14/1992, only police can ticket violators while the transportation agency has the duty to monitor and evaluate the three-in-one policy," Kanton said during a seminar on the three-in-one policy here on Friday.

Kanton stated that the "law clearly states" that transportation agency officials only have the authority to impose sanctions on public vehicles and trucks that fail to meet standard requirements.

Speaking during the same seminar, Nurrahman argued that based on Jakarta Bylaw No. 12/2003 on the three-in-one policy, they had the right to uphold the bylaw.

"The bylaw clearly stipulates that we have the right to monitor and take action against violators. So, we have the right to stop and ticket the violators. After that, we will hand them over to the police," he explained.

Article 53 of Law No. 12/1992 stipulates that transportation officers have the authority to investigate and sanction traffic violators, but the authority is limited to violations on technical requirements for vehicles, such as whether the load exceeds the allowed weight or such things like excessive exhaust emissions from public buses.

The three-in-one policy, which was first launched 13 years ago but extended and revitalized one year ago, requires private vehicle owners to have at least three passengers when passing through restricted zones; from Jl. Sisingamangraja, South Jakarta to Kota in West Jakarta, and from the Senayan overpass on Jl. Gatot Subroto to the Kuningan intersection. The restriction is enforced from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. in the morning and from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. in the afternoon, Monday through Friday.

The policy is designed to ease traffic congestion along the city's main business corridors, especially during rush hours.

It is well-known, however, that violators have often opted to bribe officers on duty when caught.

Meanwhile, City Council Commission D member, Arkeno, said during the seminar that the council had met with city administration officials to discuss the problem.

"We have told the city administration that enforcement of the three-in-one policy should be left to police to avoid public confusion. They have agreed on the suggestion. They have the right, however, to monitor how the policy is conducted," he said.

However, many transportation agency officers were still seen stopping and ticketing three-in-one violators on Friday afternoon.