Plan to abolish bemo gets strong response
Plan to abolish bemo gets strong response
JAKARTA (JP): Representatives of owners of bemo (three-wheeled
public vehicles) in East Jakarta strongly opposed yesterday the
city administration's plan to phase out the vehicles.
"We are fully against the plan because the pollution rate of
bemo isn't as high as one imagines. It is unfair to say that bemo
pollute the city. Why don't the public ever complain about
Metromini buses, which also contribute greatly to the city's air
pollution?" asked Suparmin, one of three representatives.
The city administration announced recently that all small
public transportation will be eliminated from the city, including
bemo, bajaj and ojek (motorcycle taxis), on the grounds that they
were no longer suitable to transport passengers.
"If the public complain about the loud noises from bemo's
mufflers, don't worry. We can modify them to reduce the noise,"
Suparmin added.
He was against news reports, which said that bemo spare parts
were getting difficult to find because the vehicles were imported
in 1962.
"It's not true that bemo's spare parts are difficult to find
in the city. If you want them, I can send you trucks full of
them," Suparmin said.
Suparmin, who was accompanied by Kastomi and Ata Suparman,
claimed to represent 60 bemo owners who operate along Jl.
Kayumanis Utara and Jl. Kebon Sereh in East Jakarta.
They said that executives of the Land Transportation Vehicles
Owners Organization briefed them on May 23 about the bemo
replacement plan.
The executives said 906 of the 1,096 bemo officially
registered in Jakarta will be scrapped in the first phase.
"Under the replacement program, the organization will
compensate each bemo Rp 500,000 (US$ 227.27). But we refused
because one bemo can sell for between Rp 6 and 7 million on the
market," Suparmin said.
"For their replacement, the organization will provide new
vehicles. Bemo owners intending to buy them have to pay a
down payment of Rp 5 million and a monthly installment of Rp
600,000 to Rp 700,000," he said.
Suparmin said that he agreed in principle with the replacement
plan as long as the bemo owners were able to buy the replacement
vehicles at lower prices.
Governor Surjadi Soedirdja recently stated that sooner or
later the three-wheeled vehicles would be replaced vehicles
because they are not appropriate. The replacement program will
start once the exact replacement vehicle is decided upon.
Tanah Abang is also known as a large bemo station. Other
routes include Senen to Jl. Kebon Sirih, Cipto Mangunkusumo
General Hospital to Pulogadung and Salemba Tengah to
Rawasari.(31)