`Busway not the solution to city traffic problem'

`Busway not the solution to city traffic problem'

After the postponement of its launch last October due to strong
public criticism, the busway system started its trial run last
Friday on the designated route from Blok M in South Jakarta to
Kota in West Jakarta. However, the public said that the operation
of at least 60 buses under the system, which is planned to begin
later this year, would likely worsen the traffic. The Jakarta
Post spoke with several city residents about their perceptions.

Jubaeri, 53, works as a conductor with a state-owned bus
company in South Jakarta. He resides in Rangkasbitung, Banten,
with his wife and five children:

I'm sure that the busway system is not the solution to the
traffic problem in Jakarta. The size of the thoroughfares remain
the same, while the number of vehicles, including public buses,
continue to increase. So in what way would the busway alleviate
traffic? It would make it even worse, I'm sure.

I have been making a living riding along the streets for 24
years, so I know the exact conditions of the roads. I think the
high-ranking city officials are not smart enough to know the real
condition.

I guess the busway is just an expensive project, prone to
embezzlement and mark-ups.

If the city administration is serious about the traffic
problems in Jakarta, it should not easily allow any imported
buses into the city. We can see that many imported buses,
including used ones, are already operating throughout the city.

In addition, the government should also issue a regulation
stipulating that all vehicles of more than five years old to be
transferred to other provinces, which are in dire need of public
transportation. It will also boost equal development nationwide.

This means that old and worn-out public transportation would
be removed from the city. I wonder why decrepit, 30-year-old
buses are still allowed to operate on Jakarta streets?

The city administration should be strict in this respect.
Start by banning the three-in-one traffic rule, which requires
private cars to carry at least three passengers along Sudirman
and Thamrin, as it failed to deal with the traffic congestion.
Otherwise, the traffic problems will only get worse.

Ryan, 27, is a tattoo artist who works in Blok M, South
Jakarta. He resides in Petukangan, South Jakarta, with his wife
and three adopted children:

The busway system introduced by the city administration does
not make any sense at all. I wonder why the government thinks
that the busway could eliminate the traffic jams?

How could the city government intend to add more public buses?
The additional buses will only make the traffic worse. Rather
than wasting their time addressing the busway, why don't they try
to shift the old public mini-buses to other regions in the
country?

I think that many people in many regions outside Jakarta badly
need public transportation. In my hometown in Yogyakarta, I have
to wait for hours for public buses just for a short trip.

The government should also think over the other provinces'
development, in which the lack of public transportation is a
daily problem. Jakarta is not the only place that should be
developed.

It would be better that the city administration improve the
management of the existing public transportation in the city. The
lack of discipline has severely crippled the traffic in general,
I think.

Should the busway system become a reality, I assume that the
number of criminals will also increase. Criminals might target
busway passengers, who would very likely be from the middle- and
high-income brackets.

Anyway, I'm pessimistic, as even educated people could do
nothing to block the government's decision. How can I, as a poor
person, change it?

Tono, 30, formerly a conductor on an intercity bus, has been
unemployed for some time, and is still looking for a job. He
resides in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta:

I think Jakarta has a very complex traffic problem. Worse,
it's almost impossible for the busway system to be implemented to
overcome the problem, let alone to provide a solution to
alleviate the congestion. It's impossible and a waste of the city
budget.

Now, we can see that private cars and public transportation
already fill up the designed route every day. With the busway
system, it will be worse.

If the busway system is enforced, this means that the existing
public transportation on those same routes must be reduced, which
will, in turn, spark new social unrest and threaten security in
the city.

Besides, I don't think that the well-off people in the city
will be willing to not use their own private cars. They don't
want to believe that they contribute to the traffic congestion by
driving in their own cars, anyway.

-- Leo Wahyudi S.