Novia D. Rulistia, Jakarta – It is estimated that Jakarta will face total gridlock in 2014. It is time for the city to make crucial decisions and take the necessary action to address its traffic woes.
Urban planners and transportation experts have agreed that 2013 will be a critical year for the new city administration to implement what they have carefully planned if they indeed aim to end massive traffic jams crippling Southeast Asia's largest metropolitan area.
Governor Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has said that he would take extreme measures to fix Jakarta's traffic problems, which analysts claim is easier said than done.
Speaking to city councilors about his priorities recently, the governor made it clear that the construction of the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) and new Transjakarta Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) will begin in 2013. The monorail project, which will be fully financed by the private sector, will also likely resume next year, according to the governor.
Trisakti University urban planner Yayat Supriatna said that increased traffic would be inevitable next year if construction of the transportation infrastructure took place.
"When construction begins, traffic will definitely become worse, but it's the risk we have to take. As the construction will be going on for quite a long time, the administration must significantly improve the existing public transportation system."
The administration is aware of the risks and has taken a few measures to anticipate them, but Yayat said they might not be enough.
"The administration should be able to prepare strategies to handle the worsening traffic when the construction takes place, such as traffic detours and supporting transportation infrastructures in residential areas," he said. "Otherwise, people have no choice but to use private vehicles."
The MRT construction works will include land procurement and road widening in 2013. The works are estimated to cost about Rp 3.8 trillion (US$393 million), which will be covered by a grant from the central government. The massive project is believed to be crucial in addressing the city's traffic problems, with the MRT poised to serve as a backbone of urban development after it begins operations in 2016.
Other than the MRT, Jokowi said that he wanted to speed up the monorail construction. It has been said that the governor wanted PT Jakarta Monorail to continue the construction of the old monorail route, which had been scrapped by former governor Fauzi Bowo. The route will connect Semanggi and Kuningan in South Jakarta while the second route will link Kampung Melayu in East Jakarta and Taman Anggrek shopping center in West Jakarta.
Another consortium of companies proposing a new monorail project, led by PT Adhi Karya, has been told to construct new monorail lines serving Bekasi-Jakarta or Bogor-Jakarta.
Apart from the big projects, the administration will also start building Corridor 13 of the city's bus rapid transit (BRT) system, which will connect Ciledug in South Tangerang and Blok M in South Jakarta.
Jokowi's short-term measures to address traffic will take effect in 2013 and are expected to be able to ease the gridlock caused by massive infrastructure projects.
One of his controversial plans is the odd-even license plate system. Some parties doubt that the system will work, but the governor has said he would press ahead with the plan.
Next year, all-new Kopaja and Metromini buses are expected to lure more passengers. As early as January, some of those buses will be allowed to use the certain BRT lanes, and drop-off and pick-up passengers at its shelters.
Tri Tjahjojo, chairman of the Jakarta branch of the Indonesian Transportation Society (MTI), said that the plan to revamp the minibuses should also be followed by managerial improvement.
"Most of the minibuses are individually owned so there's no standardized control. As a result, passengers get bad service. This should also be taken into account by the administration next year if they want to improve the city's traffic."
Moreover, Tri said that adding more Transjakarta buses was essential to reducing traffic, especially when the odd-even license plate policy takes effect in March. "When there is more restriction, there have got to be more alternatives to accommodate the mobility of the people." he said.
Hundreds of new Transjakarta articulated buses will be on the road next year, strengthening the existing 11 corridors. The new corridor 12 connecting Tanjung Priok and Cilincing will start operations in January.
Tri said that an integrated transportation system with Jakarta's satellite cities was also crucial to address traffic problems in the capital as those cities have grown fast.
"Even when the MRT is ready to operate, if there is no integrated transportation system with satellite cities, traffic problems will not be solved because people living in those areas have no other choice but to use private cars," he said.
"So, 2013 will be a pivotal year for the administration to determine their policy and management regarding traffic. If they can execute it, they can also take-off well and address traffic problems for the long-run," Tri said.