Tangerang minibus drivers foul up traffic with strike
Tangerang minibus drivers foul up traffic with strike
TANGERANG (JP): Hundreds of public transit drivers parked
their minibuses in the middle of Jl. Kelapa Dua Raya, Karawaci,
causing an eight-hour traffic jam and stranding passengers.
The almost half-day strike against the use of prohibited
routes by truck drivers, whom the protesters claimed bribed
officials, stranded thousands of people, including workers whose
company buses were trapped in the traffic snarl and residents
waiting for public transit vehicles.
The line of backed-up traffic -- more than 10 kilometers long
-- stretched from the Karawaci tollgate in front of the Bimantara
Islamic Village, along Jl. Kelapa Dua Raya and Jl. Bojong Nangka
Raya.
The protesters were minibus drivers and conductors plying
four main routes to the Bumi Kelapa Dua housing complex, to
Bojong Nangka, to Legok and to Anggris. All of the routes pass
along Jl. Kelapa Dua Raya and Jl. Bojong Nangka Raya.
The strikers told The Jakarta Post that they were complaining
about the huge number of trucks and other heavy-weight vehicles
that were plying roads they were prohibited from using.
"Drivers of the trucks dare to enter these roads because they
bribe officers at the Revenue Office Rp 2,000 (US 93 cents) per
trip although the sign forbidding their entry is located just in
front of the post," Ali Arifin, 29, one of the protest leaders,
told the Post.
Under local regulations, trucks are required to take another
route, the way through Bitung.
A truck driver, who got stuck in the middle of the massive
congestion, said he paid a bribe of Rp 2,000 for entry into the
forbidden area.
The protesters also demanded that the Tangerang Revenue Office
close its new post which is located in front of the Karawaci
tollgate. They complained that the long line of trucks waiting to
pay fees at the Revenue Office post causes daily traffic jams.
Sand quarry
The transit vehicle drivers also want the authorities to
immediately take action against the trucks loading and unloading
sand every day along the sides of the roads. They claim this
exacerbates traffic problems and damages the roads.
"We're tired of complaining about these problems to the
Tangerang municipality as they never give responses to our
complaints. So, we hope this massive protest will motivate some
action on this old situation," Man, 34, another protester, said.
Several passengers and other motorists shared the protesters'
views although they had to face for possible fines from their
employers for being late due to the traffic jam.
"We were hoping for a protest like this several years ago just
to give lesson to the greedy revenue officers," a lawyer, who
refused to be named, said.
Ideal conditions
Under ideal traffic conditions, she said she could reach her
house in Bojong Nangka from the tollgate in 20 minutes, but due
to the illegal presence of the trucks, she always had to spend
another one or two hours to get home.
According to the protesters, they could not even make the
daily rent for the minibuses because they had to spend so many
hours lined up behind the trucks which were using the routes
illegally.
"The money we earn is just to pay for gas because we spend too
long in such a traffic jams," Darma, 24, a driver said.
Officers from the Tangerang police precinct and the nearby
Curug sub-precinct came to the scene an hour after the protest
started at around 8:30 a.m. to try to break up the traffic
congestion.
"We almost couldn't believe how the Revenue Office people
could do all these silly things, such as allowing trucks to pass
by the forbidden signs and opening a post in front of a
tollgate," Sgt. Sudarno said. (bsr)