TB Simatupang Congestion Turns Out to Be Horrific, Says Governor Pramono
DKI Jakarta Governor Pramono Anung has admitted to witnessing firsthand the traffic congestion that frequently plagues TB Simatupang road in South Jakarta, confirming that the situation is indeed horrific.
On Saturday, the Governor deliberately travelled without a police escort, accompanied only by his driver, to inspect the conditions himself. “I intentionally went without an escort on Saturday, just me and the driver to check things myself, and it was really, truly terrible,” Pramono said.
Traffic data confirmed the severity of the problem, with vehicle speeds along the corridor dropping to between just 3 and 16 kilometres per hour during peak periods from Wednesday to Friday afternoon.
According to Pramono, the primary cause of the gridlock is the presence of National Strategic Projects (PSN) belonging to the central government that are still underway along the route. The DKI Jakarta Transportation Agency (Dishub) identified the installation of sewage pipes at multiple points along the road as the key factor behind the horrific congestion.
As a result of the construction works, parts of the road have been reduced from two to three lanes down to just one or two lanes. The congestion is not limited to rush hours but persists throughout much of the day, causing long vehicle queues and extremely slow-moving traffic.
The Governor has instructed the Highways Agency (Binamarga), the Transportation Agency (Dishub), and the Civil Service Police Unit (Satpol PP) to reduce the size of project camps along TB Simatupang so that road lanes are not excessively narrowed.
Pramono stated that he would send a formal letter to the central government regarding the severe congestion on TB Simatupang road, requesting coordination on the national strategic projects to help Jakarta alleviate the traffic burden.
The DKI Provincial Government has also instructed PAM Jaya and Paljaya to accelerate their construction work using a 24-hour non-stop system in order to address the gridlock as quickly as possible. Additionally, Pramono revealed plans to trim pavements at seven points along the road to create additional lane capacity as a short-term measure.