Drivers told to respect law

Bambang Nurbianto, Jakarta

The police have been told to get tough on traffic violators in an effort to cut down on the number of accidents, many of which are caused by drivers flouting traffic rules.

Theresia Kusumaningtyas, a psychologist at the University of Indonesia, said on Thursday the inconsistent enforcement of traffic regulations was responsible for the increasing number of traffic accidents.

"Law enforcement, particularly punishment, will be very significant in improving motorists' behavior and discipline on the streets," she said during a seminar on road safety jointly organized by the Pelangi Foundation and Persada Indonesia University.

According to data from the National Police Headquarters, 91.31 percent of traffic accidents nationwide were caused by reckless drivers. And 55.60 percent of those accidents involved motorists between the ages of 16 and 30.

The Jakarta Police recorded 196 fatalities resulting from traffic accidents in the first three months of this year, or over 65 deaths a month.

This represents a dramatic increase from the 40 traffic- related deaths a month last year and the 31 deaths per month in 2002.

The police's inconsistent enforcement of traffic rules has proven an obstacle to efforts to improve the road behavior of motorists, according to Theresia.

"Motorists tend to violate traffic regulations because they can easily compromise with police officers in solving any problems arising from an accident," she said, referring to the practice of bribing police officers rather than having to appear in court.

A researcher at the Transportation Infrastructure Reacher Center in Bandung, I Gede Wayan Samsi Gunarta, shared these sentiments.

He cited a recent survey in Cirebon, West Java, which found that 15 percent of traffic accident victims were pedestrians and 18 percent of the accidents occurred in crosswalks.

"It shows motorists not only violate traffic regulations but also ignore road discipline. It is very embarrassing."

Wayan pointed to the fact that many young drivers frequently exceeded the speed limit, as did public transportation drivers, ignoring the safety of their fellow motorists.

"We call on public transportation drivers, who tend to speed even though they are aware of the danger that poses to their passengers, to slow down," he said.

The poor condition of the roads, traffic lights and traffic signs also contribute to traffic accidents, he said.

"This is particularly due to the lack of coordination between the concerned agencies."

The City Public Works Agency is responsible for road construction and maintenance, while the City Transportation Agency is responsible for the procurement and maintenance of traffic signs and traffic lights. The two agencies often blame each other whenever a problem occurs, he said.