The trials and tribulations of city public transportation

Muninggar Sri Saraswati, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Suhari spends almost one-third of his day on the road. It is not because he is a driver. The employee of a company in Kota, Central Jakarta, spends, on average, nearly six hours in public vehicles because he lives in East Bekasi, which is about 40 kilometers away from his workplace.

He wakes at 4:15 a.m and leaves home by 5 a.m. The 30-year-old man has to take three different public vehicles to get to his office. Normally, it is very slow due to serious traffic congestion, so if there are no accidents or demonstrations causing worse traffic, he normally will arrive at his office at 7.30 a.m. Giving him just a few minutes to eat his breakfast.

Suhari leaves his office at 5 p.m. and rushes to get public transportation. He usually gets home at about 8 p.m.

"It's tiring, of course. But I am used to it," he told The Jakarta Post.

Suhari has done this for about 18 months now. He and his wife previously rented a house in Petojo, Central Jakarta, and he took a motorbike to work.

The couple moved to their home in Bekasi after they had a baby. Suhari sold his motorbike to help pay the downpayment on the house.

"Living in our own home was our dream since we got married. I couldn't afford to buy a house in the city. I know that my house is too far from my office, but that's okay," he said.

However, Suhari complained about the condition of public transportation.

"Do you realize how bad the conditions are? I am usually lucky enough to get a seat, but I never get any rest as it is always overcrowded, not to mention the hassles of street traders and beggars (who come aboard to solicit passengers)," he said.

Another commuter, Adie, also shared a similar experience.

He works in Grogol, West Jakarta, and lives in Tajur, Bogor. Just like Suhardi, he gets up early in the morning. He takes a public minivan, a train and a public bus to reach his office.

"It's not comfortable at all, either by minivan, train or bus," Adie said.

Adie also complained about the safety in the public vehicles as passengers often were victims of crime.

Jakarta has always been a magnet for people from outside the city because it offers more economic opportunities compared to other places.

At noon, Jakarta is home to 14 million people. By night, the number can go down to eight million. About four million people live in satellite cities such as Depok, Bogor, Bekasi and Tangerang, just outside of Jakarta city limits.

The satellite cities offer more affordable houses compared to those in the city.

However, the city administration has failed to provide proper public vehicles to transport the commuters. According to 2000 data, there were 5,411 buses, 4,981 minibuses and 11,848 minivans, most in a state of disrepair, to cater to the millions of commuters.

There is also no proper coordination between the city administration and the neighboring administrations. As a result, there is no integrated transportation system covering all of Greater Jakarta.

Worse still, most of the available buses and minivans are in poor condition, some barely roadworthy, most are unsafe at best. Transportation experts have repeatedly called on the administration to provide an efficient mass rapid transportation system. Unfortunately, it is still a distant dream.