Revised three-in-one traffic policy now official
Revised three-in-one traffic policy now official
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta
The city administration began implementing the revised three-in-
one traffic policy on Friday, though it did little to alleviate
the usual heavy congestion along the major thoroughfares of Jl.
Thamrin and Jl. Sudirman.
Workers began flooding out of their offices along these two
streets at about 3 p.m. in order to avoid the restricted zone.
The administration has pushed back the start of the evening
three-in-one restriction from 4 p.m. to 4:30 p.m., in response to
complaints from vendors in Glodok who said their profit had
dropped by 50 percent since the policy's implementation.
"It (the revision) is part of our efforts to boost economic
activities along the three-in-one zone, which is similar to the
busway corridor that starts from Jl. Sisingamangaraja in Blok M,
South Jakarta, to Jl. Gajah Mada in Kota, West Jakarta," Governor
Sutiyoso said in a gubernatorial decree on the revised traffic
policy dated Sept. 17.
Previously, the three-in-one restriction was enforced on
weekdays from 7 a.m. to 10 a.m. in the morning, and 4 p.m. to 7
p.m. in the evening.
The administration originally extended the hours of the three-
in-one policy on Jan. 24, in an effort to support the
implementation of the new busway corridor. The traffic policy was
expected to encourage private car owners to leave their vehicles
at home and take the busway.
However, the Jakarta chapter of the Indonesian Hoteliers
Association (PHRI) said on Thursday the extended three-in-one
hours had damaged business activities along the three-in-one
zone.
"We are suffering monthly potential losses of about Rp 40
billion (US$4.49 million) because of the implementation of the
three-in-one policy, especially in the afternoon," said Hari
Santosa, the chairman of the PHRI Jakarta chapter.
Association of Indonesian Retailers chairman Handaka Santosa
said earlier the traffic restriction discouraged people from
visiting shopping centers.
Sutiyoso, however, said his administration would not scrap the
policy, despite the complaints.
"This policy is meant to deter people from using private
vehicles, which is necessary given the rapid increase in the
number of new cars in the city. It is the most lenient traffic
policy compared to other cities in the world," he said.
The policy, which was first introduced in 1993, has been
criticized as a failure because many private car owners simply
hire people off the street to serve as passengers before entering
the restricted zone.
Law No. 14/1992 on traffic stipulates that motorists who
violate the three-in-one policy can face a maximum sentence of
one month in jail and a fine of up to Rp 1 million.