Vendors attack Jasa Marga officers
Vendors attack Jasa Marga officers
Theresia Sufa, The Jakarta Post, Bogor
Dozens of vendors pelted PT Jasa Marga Jagorawi toll road
officers with stones and chased after them with machetes and
sticks on Sunday at about 4 p.m. at the South Sentul entrance
ramp.
The vendors had been standing on the side of the road selling
durian when patrolling officers told them they should not be
there because motorists were not allowed to stop on the shoulder
of the toll road unless it was an emergency.
"We have been selling durian on the toll road for ages, so why
have the officers just banned motorists from stopping there now?"
Kusnan, 39, complained.
The number of vendors operating in the Sentul area on holidays
can reach 100, while about 70 operate on weekdays.
The head of PT Jasa Marga Jagorawi toll road, Subakti Syukur,
said the company had launched an operation banning motorists from
buying from vendors in the emergency lane since Saturday.
The chief of toll road patrol, Comr. Rahmadi, said patrolling
police would ticket motorists stopping on the shoulder of the
road, which is in violation of Article 61(1) of the Traffic Law.
Some 120 policemen from Bogor Police were deployed to handle
the clash. Upon seeing the officers, the vendors fled from the
scene. Nobody was arrested.
PT Jasa Marga plans to set up stalls along a 1.2-kilometer
stretch to accommodate vendors on the left and right side of the
toll road in Sentul, Bogor.
"We have allocated Rp 3 billion (US$352,941) for the
construction of the stalls and for building canals along the road
from Taman Mini to Cibubur in East Jakarta. The proposal for the
canal construction was just submitted to the central office,"
Subakti said.
The PT Jasa Marga Jagorawi office has also allocated Rp 35
million per month to assist the communities living along the toll
road.
"The funds have been used by locals to finance religious and
educational activities. There's also a fund for small-scale
enterprises and cooperatives for locals," he said.
The Jagorawi operator earns around Rp 500 million from over
300,000 vehicles that use the toll road every day. Some 60
percent of the revenue is used to cover operational costs.