Frequent Wrong-Way Driving: North Jakarta Motorists Request Closer U-Turns

The blaring of horns is a daily sight on several roads in North Jakarta, which are often used as spots for motorbike riders to violate traffic by driving against the flow.

One high-risk point is the U-turn on Jalan Yos Sudarso, right next to the Plumpang Transjakarta halt in Koja, North Jakarta. At this location, riders often recklessly go against the traffic to cut distances, despite the high risk to safety.

That U-turn is actually intended for vehicles coming from the direction of the North Jakarta Metro Police Resort heading back towards Tanjung Priok.

However, the effort has not been effective. Motorbike riders from the Sunter direction still frequently cut through by going against the flow to reach Plumpang or Pasar Ular.

In fact, violations are often done in groups, making traffic even more chaotic and endangering other road users.

One motorbike rider, Riko (28), admitted to frequently driving against the flow because the official U-turn distance is considered too far.

“I drive against the flow to cut the road towards JIC (Jakarta Islamic Center). Because to get to JIC, you have to U-turn far ahead at the Police Resort or loop back via Jalan Jaya Koja, which takes time since the U-turn is 1 km away,” said Riko when interviewed by Kompas.com at the location on Monday.

He realised his actions are dangerous, especially since the route is traversed by heavy vehicles like trailer trucks and containers. Often, wrong-way driving forces large vehicles to brake suddenly.

The same sentiment was expressed by ojek driver Hamid (57), who admitted to doing the same due to the U-turn distance.

“I’ve driven against the flow before because the U-turn is too far; there should be one close by, there used to be one but now it’s closed and can’t be used,” said Hamid at the location on Monday.

“It’s actually very dangerous; yesterday someone had an accident and the one who hit fled. There are often near-misses with containers,” he added.

According to him, the presence of officers greatly influences rider compliance. When police or Transport Department (Dishub) officials are on guard, violations almost do not occur. But when there is no supervision, violations become rampant again.

Hamid admitted he actually does not want to keep driving against the flow because he understands the risks it causes.