Crazy bikers pose busway danger
Urip Hudiono, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Pedestrians are worried motorcyclists will misuse the sloping ramps on the bridges over the busway corridor to make U-turns, thus endangering their safety.
"I'm worried motorcyclists will use the ramps to cross the street," said Dadang, who was using a bridge in front of Ratu Plaza in South Jakarta to cross Jl. Sudirman on Wednesday morning.
In a city still trying to uphold discipline on the streets among its citizens, motorcyclists often take advantage of pedestrian bridges to cross streets and make U-turns.
A total of 16 pedestrian bridges over the planned 12.9 kilometer-long busway corridor from Blok M in South Jakarta to Kota in West Jakarta are being constructed.
They are equipped with ramps made of steel frames and corrugated stainless steel floors, connecting them to the bus shelters and the east and west sidewalks.
Some two meter-wide ramps, which have been built with a relatively gentle slope along the zigzagging double-stack structure of about 30 meters, could tempt opportunistic motorcyclists.
Agung S., a Jakarta transportation agency officer who was at the busway shelter in front of Ratu Plaza on Wednesday, tried to reassure pedestrians that their fears were unfounded.
"There will be four civilian guards in each bus shelter ... ," he said.
Several civilian guards were seen guarding bus shelters that were having the finishing touches put on them, but it is unclear if their duties will include guarding the ramps from being misused by motorcyclists.
But some pedestrians may be willing to cede control of the ramps to the motorcyclists and stick to the stairs.
Nani, a housewife from East Jakarta, appeared to be out of breath and sweating when she stepped down from the east ramp of the pedestrian bridge in front of Ratu Plaza, complaining that it was more tiring to use the ramp than the stairs.
Edo, a student crossing the pedestrian bridge in front of Bank Indonesia on Jl. Thamrin, said he did not like the ramps.
"These zigzagging ramps just make it longer and farther for us to walk," he said.
Based on some unscientific research, The Jakarta Post found that it took almost twice as long to cross pedestrian bridges with ramps than those with stairs.
However, not all busway shelters have ramps. The one in front of the National Museum on Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat in Central Jakarta does not have a pedestrian bridge, but only a zebra crossing.
As for the shelter in front of the Sarinah department store on Jl. Thamrin in Central Jakarta, it will use elevators instead of ramps.
The middle ramp for the Sarinah shelter will also be provided with a roof, like the ramps for the bridges at Harmoni and in front of Gajah Mada Plaza, both in Central Jakarta, which also have connecting bridges over the river that crosses in front of the shelters.
The city administration said the construction of 23 shelters along the busway corridor was completed on Dec. 18, with only one ramp still under construction. The busway itself will open on Jan. 15.
The Rp 117 billion (US$13.76 million) project is an ambitious effort by Governor Sutiyoso to get people out of their cars and onto public transportation.
After visiting Bogota, which successfully implemented its own busway system, Sutiyoso wanted all the bus shelters to be designed exactly like the ones in the capital of Colombia.
In all of the shelters, ticketing machines, made in Colombia, have been installed.