Plaza offers free vehicle emission tests today
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Shopgoers can have a free vehicle emission test at Plaza Indonesia, Central Jakarta, on Tuesday. The shopping center management is working together with the City Environmental Management Agency (BPLHD) and the Association for Clean Emissions (AEB).
"The test will take place tomorrow from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The test will be imposed on all incoming private cars," management safety and emergency assistance division head Dody Hermawan told The Jakarta Post on Monday.
Those whose cars pass the test will receive a Rp 4,000 (43.5 U.S. cents) parking voucher.
"We will also award car owners, whose vehicles have the lowest emission level, with vouchers to enjoy several other facilities in the shopping center," he added.
The test will take only three to five minutes per car. The result will come up immediately after the test is completed.
"We shall inform car owners directly if their vehicles have passed the test or not," Dody said.
Plaza Indonesia is visited by 6,000 to 12,000 shopgoers every day. It required its employees to submit their cars for the emission test last year.
The plaza management will also hold an event to raise awareness of the necessity to have an emission test, between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m., by inviting some local artists.
BPLHD air pollution control division head Yusiono Anwar Supalal praised 11 institutions, mostly private companies, for actively taking part in promoting emission testing.
"The 11 institutions -- including the Jakarta Police Headquarters, the Christian University of Indonesia, PT Martina Berto, PT Kramayudha Tiga Berlian, PT Dankos, PT Kimia Farma and Plaza Indonesia -- have asked us to perform emission tests at their compounds," he told the Post.
The agency is planning a car-free day on Sept. 26 to encourage people to leave their cars at home and switch to public transportation.
Vehicular emissions account for 70 percent of air pollution in the city, while the remaining 30 percent is produced by industrial sources.