City needs 'independent transportation board'

City needs 'independent transportation board'

JAKARTA (JP): A councillor and an observer on Saturday called
for the establishment of an independent transportation board that
will evaluate the performance of city land transportations on a
daily basis and institute a smooth decision-making mechanism on
fare hikes.

Councillor Tjuk Sudono of the National Mandate Party (PAN)
faction said proposals concerning all aspects of transportation
to the governor and city council should come from this
independent board.

"For example, if the Organization of Land Transportation
Owners (Organda) wants a fare hike, the board could study the
proposal by considering the consequences of a fare hike on the
companies concerned," Tjuk told The Jakarta Post.

He said the results of the board's findings could then be used
by the governor and city council to approve or reject the
proposed fare hike.

This procedure can also be used to determine the routes of
city buses and other modes of public transportation, he said.

"In this way, we will not have controversial decisions, like
what happened last week when Organda unilaterally increased the
taxi fare. Organda and the City Land Transportation Agency
(DLLAJ) should not dominate city transportation affairs," he
said.

Chairperson of the Indonesian Transportation Society's (MTI)
Jakarta Chapter Milatia Kusuma separately told the Post that many
non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been suggesting the
establishment of such board to the city administration, but to no
avail.

"We really need the board because most of the time, the city
administration does not realize that transportation is related to
economic, social and environmental issues," she said.

An independent board will have a better perspective in
formulating all kinds of transportation regulations and not only
with regards to technical issues, she said.

"The city administration only has to consider technical
issues of transportation while we have to consider the social and
environmental consequences of a fare hike," Milatia added.

The 50 percent increase on taxi fares which came into effect
on Sept. 1 surprised the public as they had not been properly
informed about the hike. (dja)