Ijoel Makes Pac-Man Zebra Crossing Go Viral, Here's the Budget Spent

JAKARTA - Safe and aesthetic public facilities do not always require a fantastical budget. This is proven by Ijoel, a content creator who recently went viral for turning a rigid zebra crossing in the Tebet area, South Jakarta, into an iconic Pac-Man-themed crossing. One of the interesting points is the cost incurred. Ijoel said the capital prepared was purely from his own pocket with a relatively affordable amount. “That was the last one done, around Pancoran it’s about Rp 200,000 to Rp 300,000. So it’s not too expensive, that’s just for the spray paint,” Ijoel told Kompas.com recently. If calculated in total, including the operational needs of his small team in the field, the cost remains quite economical for public facility improvements. Ijoel realises that administratively, road maintenance is not the domain of civil society. However, the low cost and quick process he carried out is a response to the urgent field conditions that are already “dead” due to fading. However, seeing the missing road markings in an area with dense traffic made him choose to execute the idea independently rather than waiting for a long bureaucratic process. “Because it’s already frustrating there, what we usually do is, well, let’s just execute it rather than waiting a long time. And also people are getting more dangerous, with all the traffic,” said Ijoel.