Jakartans participate in clean-air campaign through SMS
Jakartans participate in clean-air campaign through SMS
Abdul Khalik
The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
Public transportation operators in Jakarta might have to pay more
attention to their vehicles' emissions as Jakartans now have a
chance to complain about the fumes they are spewing out.
Since July, blue-skies watchdog Swisscontact has received over
250 text messages from people in Jakarta reporting public
transportation vehicles they have spotted belching out thick
black smoke on the streets of the capital.
"Pollution in Jakarta is getting worse every day. Public
participation is crucial to reducing pollution. That's why we
have been encouraging the public to send us their complaints by
SMS. Rather surprisingly, many Jakartans have actually
responded," Ari Muhammad of Swisscontact told The Jakarta Post
over the weekend.
There are a large number of companies operate various types of
transportation vehicles in the capital, including taxi firms,
bajaj (motorized trishaw) operators, mikrolet (minivan)
operators, and the Metromini, Kopaja, Mayasari, and PPD bus
companies.
Swisscontact is encouraging people to text their complaints to
0817-66-00001, stating how bad the smoke was, the type of vehicle
-- taxi, bus, or mikrolet -- and the vehicles registration
number.
He said that Swisscontact was still compiling the reports and
would submit them to the Jakarta Transportation Agency, the
police and the Jakarta Transportation Council for follow-up
action.
Jakarta is the third most polluted city in the world, with
over six million vehicles spewing out noxious emissions every
day.
Although there are only 600,000 public transportation vehicles
in the capital, many environmentalists say that most of them are
unroadworthy and heavy polluters
Ari said that the large number of complaints showed that
something was seriously wrong with the vehicle testing system.
According to the prevailing regulations, public transportation
vehicles have to undergo a number of different tests, including
an emission test, before they can hit the road. The Jakarta
Transportation Agency is the body that is responsible for testing
public transportation vehicles.
Theoretically, a vehicle's operator will be unable to get the
vehicle registered if it has failed any of the tests.
"Belching out thick smoke is one clear indication that a
vehicle should not be allowed on the road in the first place. We
hope that the complaints sent in by the public will make the
authorities aware that the people are watching them," Ari said.