Catching up with Jakarta buses

Catching up with Jakarta buses

Tertiani ZB Simanjuntak, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

When Jakartans say they have to catch a bus, often they are
speaking literally. For getting a bus in the capital frequently
involves running down the street after the thing, because buses
never actually seem to pull up next to bus stops and pick up
passengers.

"Buses don't stop at bus stops anymore," Soeryanto, a resident
of Pancoran, South Jakarta, told The Jakarta Post while waiting
across the street from the Pasar Rumput market in Manggarai for a
bus to the Kampung Rambutan bus station.

The bus stop was only 15 meters to the left of the
intersection where he was standing, right under the pedestrian
bridge.

A bus driver, Purba, said stopping at bus stops would mean
losing time, passengers and, off course, money.

"But it's not only us (bus drivers) who are reluctant to stop
there. Passengers often ask us to stop at the point closest to
their destination, which is definitely not at a bus stop," the
driver told the Post.

Several people were seen standing at a bus stop in front of
Pasar Festival on Jl. Rasuna Said in South Jakarta last Friday,
but they were not waiting for a bus. Rather, they were looking
for magazines and crossword books at the shelter, which had been
converted into a small magazine kiosk.

Over 100 publications were on display, creating a colorful
wall at the back of the bus stop. A small kiosk selling snacks
and soft drinks was located next to the magazines. There was even
a bamboo chair next to the shelter.

"The owner of the magazine kiosk is the same person who owns
the snack kiosk. We're open around the clock. The chair is where
the night attendant sleeps," said Yanti, who has worked at the
kiosk for two years.

Although there are no regulations that allow for the opening
of magazine and snack kiosks inside bus stops, Yanti said the
city's public order officers did not seem to mind.

"They charge us thousands of rupiah every month," she said.

The fact that some bus shelters have been turned into
minimarkets, however, is not the only reason why most bus
passengers do not use them.

Many bus stops across the city are in poor condition,
including some that have lost their roofs. At some bus shelters
some of the letters from the name of the stop have been lost,
making for some funny words. For example, the bus stop near the
Regent Hotel on Jl. Rasuna Said now bears the name Halte Rege
(pronounced like "reggae").

Some bus stops, such as the one in front of City Hall on Jl.
Medan Merdeka Selatan, has some artistic flair and boasts
comfortable benches. But the benches at the bus stop down the
street can make for some tricky sitting.

Some bus shelters have been turned into "homes" for the
homeless and street buskers, making bus passengers think twice
before stopping at them.

Bambang Permadi, who lives in Tebet, South Jakarta, said he
got off at a bus stop on Jl. M.T. Haryono in South Jakarta and
would never do so again.

"I was in the shelter, which was empty at first, when a group
of men approached me and robbed me. They took my wallet and my
mobile phone. They threatened me with a knife when I refused to
tell them the PIN number for my ATM card," he said.