Novia D. Rulistia, Jakarta – Ignoring the inherent dangers, passengers still patiently wait to get on and off the buses near toll road exits and entrances.

Denita Savitri, a resident of Kalimalang, Bekasi, said that she found the unofficial bus depot near the Jatibening toll road useful as it provided a quicker route home after a long commute from her office in Grogol, West Jakarta.

"There's a small path near the Jatibening toll gate that leads to a road where ojek (motorcycle taxis) and angkot (public minivans) wait for us," she said. "From there, it takes only about five minutes to reach my house."

On Friday, hundreds of people blockaded the toll road serving Jakarta and Bekasi near the Jatibening toll road entrance, protesting state-owned toll road operator PT Jasa Marga's decision to shut down an unofficial bus depot in the area.

Jasa Marga erected fences at the 8th kilometer of the toll road to prevent buses from picking up and dropping off passengers, a practice blamed for traffic jams in the area.

Friday's incident was not the first to occur at the unofficial Jatibening bus terminal, which, according to police, has been there since 1987.

The first conflict occurred in 2002 when Jasa Marga planned to move the toll gate to West Cikarang to ease the flow of traffic bound for Jakarta. At that time, hundreds of residents also blocked the toll road, burning several posts at the toll gate.

Several similar conflicts happened this year, especially after Jasa Marga pulled down the toll gate, and turned some of the area into a park.

Jasa Marga director Adityawarman said that the company would open access to the depot and add special lanes near the toll gates so buses could drop and pick up passengers without disturbing the traffic and endangering the passengers.

On Saturday, the company and the Bekasi administration conducted a survey to determine the best spot for the additional lanes.

Transportation expert from the University of Indonesia Ellen Tangkudung said that it would also be more effective if there were more public transportation routes that matched the needs of the passengers using the unofficial depot.

"unofficial terminals exist because passengers need to get on and off at certain places, and the existing routes don't suit them," she said. She added however that the habit of people taking shortcuts also exacerbated the situation.

The availability of easy access that answers people's needs has led to the emergence of many illegal stops for public transportation not only in Jatibening, but also in other parts of Greater Jakarta.

Ellen said such cases occurred in Pasar Rebo in East Jakarta, Slipi and Kebon Jeruk toll gate in West Jakarta. The Pasar Rebo stop has developed into a commercial area that offered transportation services. "If we go there, we can see that someone has set up a park-and-ride service for motorcycles, besides other businesses," she said.

Jakarta Transportation Agency's chief Udar Pristono said that although the agency conducted regular patrols in the area, it would not be able to solve traffic problems resulting from unofficial bus stops. "It has become a social and economic issue. As long as there is no integrated effort from all, unofficial bus stations will be hard to eradicate."