Industry groups oppose scrapping of 3-in-1 system

Industry groups oppose scrapping of 3-in-1 system

JAKARTA (JP): The city administration has met with opposition
following its announcement that car stickers would replace the
three-in-one traffic regulation after next month's General
Session of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).

The head of Indonesian Transportation Society, Suyonodikun,
and an Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI) executive, Agus
Pambagio, called Monday for improvements to be made to the
current system.

The stickers will create new problems and burden motorists,
they told The Jakarta Post after participating in a live-to-air
discussion on private radio station Trijaya FM at the Hilton
hotel.

Suyonodikun -- whose organization represents NGO members,
government officials and transportation owners -- said the
existing system had two or three shortcomings but a complete
shift was not needed.

The municipality should take steps toward decreasing the
problems, including improving the quality of public buses, he
said.

"With good buses available on the streets, I think most people
working in the city wouldn't hesitate to leave their cars in
garages."

Currently, city buses are too dirty and overcrowded, so many
residents have decided to drive their cars rather than sweat it
out on public buses.

Suyonodikun, who is also head of the transportation bureau of
the National Development Planning Board (Bappenas), said the
municipality should also provide buses to ply short distances
around certain thoroughfares to help ease traffic congestion.

The three-in-one regulation, which was introduced in 1992,
requires a minimum of three passengers in a private car traveling
along the city's major thoroughfares of Jl. M.H. Thamrin, Jl.
Sudirman and part of Jl. Gatot Subroto between 6:30 a.m. and 10
a.m. every day except Sunday.

In December, the municipality announced it would do away with
the regulation, which was designed to encourage people to use
public buses, because it had been circumvented by motorists
hiring "jockeys".

Jockey is the local term for people offering themselves as the
second or third passenger in a car -- at the rate of Rp 1,000 --
for a short ride through the restricted area.

After meeting with President Soeharto last month, Governor
Sutiyoso said the sticker system would be implemented after the
MPR General Session in March.

The governor promised that the new system would benefit the
poor because "the money earned from the sale of stickers will be
used to improve public transportation fleets".

At least three firms have submitted a proposal to become
partners in the scheme and provide the necessary hardware.

One of the firms, PT Wijaya Wisesa, owned by former Jakarta
deputy governor Eddie M. Nalapraya, reportedly proposed that
motorists be charged Rp 5,000 per entry, Rp 8,000 for the entire
day and Rp 100,000 for one month.

City councilors hailed the plan, saying the city would gain
more from the new system.

But Agus from YLKI said the municipality had no real reason
for revoking the three-in-one regulation and replacing it with
the sticker system.

"The new concept seems to burden the people more. The public
do not want to learn a new concept when they have just become
accustomed to the current one."

He also expressed doubt that city officials would be able to
satisfactorily manage revenue from the new system.

The two-hour discussion on Trijaya FM also invited listeners
to call in with their views on the three-in-one regulation.

Most participants shared Suyonodikun and Agus' opinions,
saying they would prefer to find alternative shortcuts rather
than buy the stickers.

"The three-in-one system could work well as long as all of us,
the motorists, officials and police, are disciplined citizens,"
one listener, Nurul from Depok, said. (emf/bsr)