Motorbikes may be banned from Jakarta main roads

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The city administration is considering imposing restrictions on motorcycles in the capital, including banning them from entering the city's thoroughfares, in order to ease traffic congestion.

"We have to limit the use of motorcycles in the capital. Frankly speaking, I am worried about the skyrocketing numbers of motorcycles on city streets," Sutiyoso said at City Hall.

Sutiyoso said the growth in the numbers of motorbikes in the capital was higher than that of cars.

City police traffic division data shows the number of motorbikes in the city rose by an average of 15.72 percent a year during the past five years since 2000, while cars rose by only 7.37 percent a year.

Motorcycles account for 63 percent of the more than 6.5 million vehicles in the city, while private cars stand at 27 percent of the total, followed by buses and minivans.

The Indonesian Motorcycle Industry Association (AISI) estimates that the sales of motorcycles countrywide will grow steadily in the future, spurred on by inadequate transportation infrastructure and cheap loans for bikes.

"I have witnessed how chaotic transportation in the city of Hanoi (Vietnam) is, mainly due to the ubiquitous presence of motorcycles. And I think Jakarta is heading in the same direction," Sutiyoso said.

"We will impose a traffic restriction policy similar to the policy being implemented in some cities in the People's Republic of China," he said.

Shanghai city has banned motorbikes and bicycles from its downtown areas in order to encourage people to use the city's subways.

"I hope Jakarta residents would understand if we imposed some traffic restraints targeting motorcyclists," Sutiyoso said.

The administration also planned to impose taxes on the operation of motorcycles with two-stroke engines to cut down on air pollution in the capital, Sutiyoso said.

City Environmental Management Board head Kosasih Wirahadikusumah said that the administration would require owners of two-stroke motorcycles to pay higher taxes to discourage people from using them.

Kosasih referred to the two-stroke motorcycles as "monsters", saying they had the highest emission level of all motorized vehicles.

"A single two-stroke engine motorcycle has an emission levels equal to 10 four-stroke motorcycles or 20 cars," he said.

Of the 6.5 million motorized vehicles in the city, some four million of them are motorcycles. At least one million motorcycles in the city have two-stroke engines.