City told to learn from fiasco of pedicab abolition

City told to learn from fiasco of pedicab abolition

JAKARTA (JP): The Association of Land Transportation Owners (Organda) has assured all registered bemo drivers that they will be eligible to trade in their vehicles and purchase minivans through time payments, an official of the association said.

A bemo is a motorized three-wheeled transportation vehicle.

Hutagalung, one of the association's division heads, told reporters yesterday that Governor Surjadi Soedirdja had agreed to the plan to arrange for each driver of registered bemo to have a new minivan.

Hutagalung did not mention the process a bemo driver would have to go through to obtain a minivan.

He said that the provision of minivans through bank loans was under negotiation. He added that minivan dealers would appraise and buy the bemo, allowing the drivers to put a down payment on new minivans.

On Wednesday, City Councilor Machmud Chaniago told the administration to be extra careful in phasing out the bemo.

"Bemo should only be phased out when the administration is ready," said Machmud of the Commission B for economic affairs.

The provision of minivans for bemo owners must be well prepared, he added.

"Bemo owners should get new minivans as soon as their bemo are handed over to the authorities. Delayed process could endanger the livelihood of both owners and drivers," he said.

There are around 1,800 bemo in Jakarta, including 750 which lack permits.

Chaniago also said the administration must not promise bemo drivers too much, as it did with becak drivers some years ago.

"When becak were phased out (in 1990) the administration promised that the drivers would be trained as drivers of motorized vehicles," said Machmud from the Indonesian Democratic Party faction.

"But only a few becak drivers were trained due to poor arrangements. People living in housing complexes have been waiting for another means of transportation since becak were officially banned," he said.

Motorcycle taxis (ojek) stepped into the vacuum left by the absence of becak. "But ojek is not part of the public transportation system officially acknowledged in the city," he added.

The city transportation system does not recognize three- wheeled and two-wheeled public transportation vehicles.

Due to the public's needs, the bemo and the smaller capacity three-wheeled bajaj have been tolerated.

The seven-seat bemo has been operating in the city since 1962.

Earlier this year Governor Surjadi instructed that the three- wheeled bemo should be replaced by compact four-wheeled vehicles to save space on small roads.

Organda earlier suggested that bemo owners should be given Rp 500,000 for their vehicles.

"Such low compensation is inhumane," said Hasan Dasy, another Commission B city councilor.

Hasan said the administration should take into account the current market price of bemo which can reach Rp 9 million. (yns/anr)