Damaged railings in Jakarta

Damaged railings in Jakarta

From Warta Kota

In some parts of Jakarta, crowded areas have been railed-off in a bid to create public order, such as in Pancoran, Glodok, West Jakarta, Pasar Minggu, South Jakarta and Cawang, East Jakarta.

Many of these steel fences, however, are now in need of repair. Bars are often damaged, some have even been cut through. People seem to avoid using cross bridges or going roundabout ways. In Glodok and Pasar Minggu, for instance, the damaged bars have not been repaired by the city administration.

Before blaming vandals, the location of railings, as determined by the city, should be examined. In market places, with busy buying and selling activities, totally closed railings are not appropriate.

In such places, there should at least be gates in the railings. Otherwise, porters or customers carrying heavy loads are forced to walk long distances behind the steel bars, before they reach the road and public transportation. The same rules do not apply to the National Monument and markets.

UTARI NURDIN Jakarta