Karawaci faces growing traffic problem

Karawaci faces growing traffic problem

TANGERANG, West Java (JP): Motorists have been complaining
about growing traffic congestion around the massive Lippo
Karawaci shopping center as more stores, restaurants and other
businesses open there.

The traffic flow reached a peak on Dec. 3 when about 300,000
visitors went to the super mall for shopping on the Sunday the
Mega M department store opened at the end of November.

Motorists said that now traffic jams happen almost everyday,
especially on Saturdays and Sundays.

At least 25,000 vehicles from Jakarta enter the super mall
complex each Saturday and Sunday to enjoy the new shopping and
entertainment center in the complex, located some 20 kilometers
west of Jakarta.

Around 67,000 vehicles from Jakarta passed the Karawaci entry
toll gate on Sunday last week, James T. Ready, deputy chairman of
the Lippo Group, said.

The unexpected response caused a long line of cars stretching
from the outside part of the Karawaci toll gate to most of the
streets in the Lippo Karawaci area and its surroundings.

The traffic woes forced the Lippo Karawaci management to field
450 people, 150 of whom are managers, to handle the traffic last
Saturday.

"The Lippo management should have foreseen the increasing
number of cars heading for this area, especially on weekends,"
said Pratikno, a state employee, who lives in Tangerang.

Another driver said that before the complex was built,
feasibility studies on the environment, including traffic
management, should have been made.

"The Lippo management should have been informed about the
possible number of vehicles using the roads surrounding the
complex every day. The management has targeted residents in
Karawaci and certain areas of Jakarta as shoppers. However, the
management does not seem to even a have rough estimate of the
population in the target areas," said another visitor, who spent
hours to reach Mega M on a Sunday.

"Just imagine what will happen, when all of the projects in
the 210,000-square-meter complex are completed in the future,
when the number of vehicles going in and out will be much
higher," said an area resident, who refused to be named.

James Riyadi said he could understand why people blamed Lippo
Karawaci for causing traffic congestion, because most people do
not know the Lippo Karawaci plan.

He said his office had anticipated the "explosion" in the
number of vehicles entering the complex once the entertainment
centers and the shops opened.

"We plan to construct a number of underpasses, flyovers and
new toll gates to anticipate the completion of all projects in
this Lippo Karawaci area," James told The Jakarta Post here on
Saturday.

James and his staff guaranteed that there would be no more
traffic congestion in the Lippo Karawaci area once all of the
road infrastructure was completed.

"We have designed our existing roads to be able to facilitate
at least 80,000 cars per day," James said.

The Lippo Supermal, developed with an investment of Rp 250
billion (US$120 million) by Lippo Group together with Rodamco
from the Netherlands and the government of Singapore, was
dedicated by West Java Governor R. Nuriana on Saturday afternoon.
(bsr)