Rp60,000 Parking Tariff Deemed Worth Testing in Congested Areas

Indonesian Transport Society (MTI) advisory board member Djoko Setijowarno has said the proposed parking tariff of up to Rp60,000 per hour is worth testing to curb private vehicle use in Jakarta. According to Djoko, parking rates in Jakarta remain far too cheap. Raising tariffs must form part of a strategy to encourage the public to switch to public transport.

“The wealthy have become too pampered. There is nothing wrong with being rich, but if they are unwilling to pay for parking, then they should not bring their cars,” Djoko said when contacted by Media Indonesia on Wednesday (26/8).

He assessed that Jakarta’s public transport network is now sufficiently developed to support such a policy. Public transport coverage is said to reach 92.5% of Jakarta, including microtrans services in residential areas. Djoko said the parking tariff increase is a transport demand management strategy.

The government needs to implement a push and pull strategy, namely restricting private vehicle use while simultaneously strengthening public transport. “The pull factor has been provided through public transport. Pedestrian facilities must also be good because public transport users inevitably walk,” he said.

According to him, parking policy must also involve satellite areas. Many residents of Bodetabek work in Jakarta, so controlling vehicles will not be sufficient if only the capital city government acts.

Satellite areas, he said, must provide feeder services from residential neighbourhoods to stations and public transport corridors. The Jakarta provincial government can also direct grants to satellite areas to strengthen public transport.

“Do not only ask Jakarta to provide transport while satellite areas fail to build feeder services,” he stressed.

Although he supports the tariff increase, Djoko urged that implementation be carried out gradually. The Rp60,000 rate need not be applied immediately across all of Jakarta, but could begin in congested areas with high vehicle activity. “Rp60,000 should be applied at certain points first, not everywhere. This needs to be tried. We must be bold, but gradual,” he said.

Djoko also asked that the controversy over the Rp60,000 figure not shift the main objective of the policy. According to him, the government must focus on controlling congestion and encouraging private vehicle users to shift to public transport. “If policies like this are never tried, Jakarta will never solve its congestion problem,” he concluded.