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Standstill

Jakarta came to a standstill in late October, when rainy-season floods crippled the streets. Evening commuters sat in bumper-to-bumper traffic for hours, and water engulfed low-lying neighborhoods in North and Central Jakarta. Governor Fauzi Bowo’s prized East Canal, which he has been boasting about since it opened in early 2010, proved to have failed. For days after the jam people posted scathing criticism on Facebook, Twitter and in newspaper editorials. Bowo said he wasn’t to blame for the weather, and only issued a public apology after discovering that some visiting foreign dignitaries had been stuck in the gridlock. 

 

The situation signaled just how bad traffic has become in rapidly urbanizing, increasingly affluent Jakarta. Rising incomes have led to a boom in car and motorcycle purchases. Astra, the nation’s largest car manufacturer, says profits have grown by 60 percent this year. With more than a thousand new vehicles added to the road each day, the city is literally crumbling under its own weight. The price is adding up: car speeds average a mere eight kilometers per hour and time wasted in jams costs the city more than $1.5 billion annually.

 

Moreover, the capital’s creaky, dilapidated buses pose health and safety hazards.

 

But sadly, half of all the buses operating in Jakarta are unfit for public use, according to the Jakarta Land Transport Operators Association.  It’s not that the city doesn’t have enough money to repair them, rather maintenance requires monitoring and oversight.

 

On November 30 city officials promised to police the city’s Busway lanes to ensure they were clear from traffic and restore order to city parking. Many car owners dislike the Busway for requiring frequent repairs that lead to construction and subsequent traffic delays. 

 

Urban planners say changing attitudes and creating mass transit that is pro-public may be the biggest challenge facing the widespread implementation of public transportation in Jakarta.

 

Sources: Jakarta Globe, Christian Science Monitor, The Economist