Traffic jams and the rains

Traffic jams and the rains

From Pelita

Every time it rains in Jakarta there are tremendous traffic jams. The afternoon of Tuesday Oct. 15 was a case in point.

If nothing is done, nothing will change. Do we have to put up with traffic jams every time it rains? What a pointless waste of time and energy!

Nobody seems to understand why these past few years the situation has worsened. A few years ago the rain did not trigger traffic jams.

I think bad drainage is one of the main causes of the excessive water on the roads. So why are the drains not dredged? Does it depend on the will of the related public works agencies?

There may be another cause. Many water catchment areas do not exist any more. Former swamps now support high rise buildings like the area around Hotel Indonesia.

The related public works agencies should map water-absorption areas so that they are not used for construction.

SITI FATIMAH

Jakarta