Jakarta increasingly chaotic

Jakarta increasingly chaotic

From Tajuk

I will have to leave Jakarta for good. Perhaps many will follow me. Why? A very simple answer: Jakarta is growing more and more disorganized, particularly in terms of traffic and an increasing number of traffic jams.

Please consider the results from my observations of the condition of this capital city:

* Annual floods do not seem to have been properly treated by both the local government and the people.

* The number of privately owned motor cars has continued to increase, particularly because of the present trend of importing luxury cars.

At the same time there has never been what is called a scrapping policy. No wonder at the moment there are in Jakarta more than three million car units, which are too many for the city to accommodate.

They consist of very old, old and new cars of different makes, not to mention public buses and government-owned cars. It is not surprising, therefore, that traffic jams have continued to worsen thus making the "big village" of Jakarta increasingly chaotic, all the more so during the rainy season.

I am prompted to ask this question: What has the local government been doing so far with its annual budget of improving Jakarta in order to make it a real home for its inhabitants?

If this condition has not improved within the next five years, I am afraid we will not be able to drive our cars in the streets. The moment we leave home to be on the road, we won't be able to move because of traffic jams everywhere. And this is why I will have to leave Jakarta for good after five years from now. I'll be going back to my sweet village home...

G.Y. PRATAMA

Jakarta