Elevated toll roads for traffic snarls

Despite the dire crisis by which Indonesia is sadly still gripped, people still seem to use their cars, to judge by the ever-present traffic jams. This caused me to think again about a possible solution that would at least reduce the present load on inadequate, overcongested roads. Clearly it is not the subway from Blok M to Kota, one of the then minister of technology, now President, B.J. Habibie's ideas. This was just another pretentious scheme for self-aggrandizement (like the quite unnecessary national airplane), costing many millions of dollars -- even into the billions.

Looking at a map of London's extensive underground system covering hundreds of miles and with about 350 stations -- built up over the past 100 years at a cost, in today's value, of tens of billions pounds sterling, one sees the Habibie plan would only cover perhaps eight kilometers, with perhaps half a dozen stations. Yet even with its underground system, and a very good network of double-decker buses, London still has a traffic problem.

Surely a far better answer -- and far less costly -- would be an elevated (toll) road built along the same line as the subway, or an elevated railway, like Bangkok, as and when the funds may be forthcoming.

RB SAWREY-COOKSON

Jakarta