People find own ways to conserve fuel

Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung

It has been a week now since Hilman Hidayat resolved to leave his car at home in east Bandung and take his motorbike to work to save fuel.

"I made up my mind not to worry about appearances, and decided to use the bike instead of the car, said Hilman, 36.

He said that if he used his car, a Jeep, it would cost him Rp 30,000 per day.

"That doesn't include parking. If I include that, then I end up spending some Rp 45,000 a day," he said.

In order to save money and fuel, he bought a second hand motorcycle for Rp 7 million. Going to work on the bike only costs him Rp 6,000 a day.

The father of two children said that he had to economize after the fuel crisis hit the country, including Bandung city, recently.

While money drove Hilman to economize, Jojo, an official with the Bandung Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation Office, said that he had adopted fuel saving measures after President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono instructed government institutions, both central and local, to help conserve energy.

He said he had told his three children to watch less TV. He had advised them that if they were not really watching it, then it would be better to switch it off. He had also told them not to switch on the lights until it was absolutely necessary.

"I have also asked my wife and children to turn off the bathroom light after they've finished," said Jojo, who lives in Antapani.

Sitorus, a bus driver on the Cicaheum-Ledeng route, said that as a result of the fuel crisis and the high prices charged on the black market, he often turned off his engine while waiting for passengers near the bus terminal.

"At least I can save one or two liters a day," he said.

Ironically, however, the energy saving measures have not been fully implemented in West Java provincial government offices.

Some civil servants at the West Java provincial council building were seeing playing games on their computers, while the lights were still on in the afternoon in some Bandung municipal government offices.