YLKI wants govt to gradually scrap Mikrolet
YLKI wants govt to gradually scrap Mikrolet
JAKARTA (JP): A leading consumers organization urged the
Jakarta administration to gradually scrap 12-seat Mikrolet public
minibuses and to develop rail-based mass transport system.
Their request comes in the wake of Mikrolet crews refusing to
close the doors of their vehicles while in transit.
Yesterday, Chairwoman of the Indonesian Consumers Organization
Zumrotin Kasru Susilo told The Jakarta Post that Jakarta cannot
accommodate the transit needs of its 10 millions residents with
Mikrolet, a locally designed passenger van.
"Mikrolet should be banned," Zumrotin said, adding that prior
to the prohibition there should be other jobs created for the
soon-to-be unemployed vehicle crews.
According to her, small vehicles such as Mikrolet cannot give
comfortable and safe service to their passengers. She said that
this ultimately encourages people to buy cars, putting more of a
burden on an already overtaxed traffic system.
"Frankly speaking, all of this is in the interest of the auto
industries," the consumer activist said.
She noted that it was high time a rail-based mass transport
system was developed given Jakarta's transit crisis.
On Friday of last week, hundreds of Mikrolet drivers staged a
strike to protest the government's new regulation which prohibits
them from keeping their vehicles' doors open.
Refusing to carry passengers, the drivers closed their
Mikrolet's doors, blocked the streets in the downtown area and
caused heavy traffic jams.
Meanwhile Executive Director of the Indonesian Legal Aid
Foundation Mulyana W. Kusumah said that the government should
first talk to owners and drivers before launching a transport
service improvement.
Mulyana noted that bowing to the demands of the consumer
organization would weaken the integrity of the government.
Drivers
In a related development, a scholar at the Jakarta-based
Trisakti Transport Management Academy, Hasan Basri, said the
Jakarta administration should not lay the blame solely on the
drivers but also on the passengers as well.
"People are lazy to walk, even five meters, to reach the
proper place to wait for public vehicles," Hasan bluntly said. He
added that the government should launch a campaign regarding the
civic discipline.
Hasan, also an official of the Ministry of Transportation in
charge of research, suggested that the government change the
working systems between owners and drivers.
Under the present system, drivers have to pay a certain amount
of rent to the owner regardless of the number of passengers they
transport each day.
According to Hasan, the system forces drivers to race along
their routes, looking for as many passengers as they can while
ignoring traffic regulations.
He said that, based on his experiences in developed countries,
the government should demand companies give to their drivers
monthly wages. (09)