Article

Problem of Urban Transportation in Indonesia : Traffic Congestion

Arranged By :

Nadia Sastrivia Eka Christy

NPM : 181317149

INTERNATIONAL CIVIL ENGINEERING PROGRAM

UNIVERSITAS ATMA JAYA YOGYAKARTA
 Problem of Urban Transportation in Indonesia : Traffic Congestion

An increase in a population in cities and towns versus rural areas. Urbanization began
during the industrial revolution, when workers moved towards manufacturing hubs in cities to
obtain jobs in factories as agricultural jobs became less common. Urbanization refers to the
population shift from rural to urban residency, the gradual increase in the proportion of people
living in urban areas, and the ways in which each society adapts to this change. Urbanization is
relevant to a range of disciplines, including urban planning, geography, sociology, economics,
and public health.

Urbanization is inevitable as a country’s production moves away from agriculture and

towards industry. People begin to move to the cities for better access to employment and
resources. Multiple factors contribute to urbanization, and many of them are positive. People
seek the best opportunity to provide for themselves and their families, and urban environments
are often the answer.

Transportation issues are very complex because various social, economic and cultural
aspects are involved and inconsistency between land use plan and transportation plan is also one
of the problem causes. The increasing traffic demand has brought about traffic congestion
resulting in longer travel times on roads. Since transportation infrastructure and services play a
significant role in urban system, the expected role is to support to improve quality of life, to
attain sustainable urban growth, and to strengthen economic competitiveness of the region

Indonesia is one of the largest countries in the world without a decent or well-functioning
public transportation system. The public transportation issue itself is not only limited to large
cities such as Jakarta, Surabaya or Medan, but it also involves many intra-city transportation
hubs and island transportation systems. It is, without a doubt, one of the largest and most
complex issues that the government and private sector must tackle from all fronts.

Because the center of Indonesia is Jakarta, the theory of urbanization prevails, Jakarta’s
population increases. Due to increasing population, hundreds of mall grew in the city. The
largest and most luxurious mall in the world is in Jakarta. In addition to mall there are also
hundreds of apartments and flats of which location are not regulated in detail. Indonesia's largest
airport is located in Cengkareng near Jakarta. Indonesia’s largest port is Tanjung Priok in North
Jakarta. As a result, since all gathered in Jakarta, traffic jams occur.

Traffic congestion is a chronic problem faced in the Jabodetabek region and the situation
is expected to worsen should there be no improvement of any kind made on the existing
transportation system. At present, the economic loss caused by traffic congestion in the region
could be as much as $ 68 million per year due to traffic congestion – and this estimate excludes
the impacts of traffic congestion and pollution on human health.

 More Vehicles, Not Enough Roads

Traffic congestion is accompanied by an increasing number of traffic accidents. These

are dominated by motorcycle accidents, which also account for the highest portion of fatalities
and major injuries. Careless driving and unruly behavior by drivers are the main causes of
accidents in Indonesia. In general, Indonesia’s traffic congestion is caused by a growth in the
number of vehicles, which has outpaced the development of roads. This was predicted due to the
rapid increase in the country’s population, which of course increases the demand for
transportation of all kinds. Until now, there is no strict regulation or control over the number of
vehicles. As a result, it’s not uncommon for one family to have more than one vehicle, be it two-
wheelers or cars.

The large influx of vehicles has not been accompanied by an increase in well-built roads.
The majority, if not all, of the roads in Indonesia are narrow, and do not have any dividing lines
between motor vehicles and other forms of transportation. Bus, cars, motorcycles, and bicycles
all use the same lane. Moreover, many roads do not have sidewalks and thus no specific
pathways for pedestrians, making them very dangerous.

 Lack of Law

However, congestion and the uncontrolled number of vehicles are not the only issues that
must be immediately solved. The lack of traffic laws and regulations also needs scrutiny. In
addition, efforts are also needed to create strict traffic laws and regulations. Even where traffic
laws are in place, they are not fully obeyed. This reality, combined with the rising number of
traffic accidents, should be a catalyst for the government to enforce stricter laws and regulations.
 Toll roads have helped to relieve urban traffic congestion in these cities, but internal
traffic circulation is still in need of improvement: a poorly developed sub-arterial network,
interference from roadside activities, and mixed traffic remain causes of delay and reduced
capacity.

One possible way to cope with increasing traffic congestion in Jakarta is to significantly
increase the road (to total area) ratio. The previous administration has approved a proposal to
build new toll roads in Jakarta’s downtown which will add 0.3 percent to the current ratio of 6.26
percent. Another possible solution is to reduce the number of vehicles on the street. This is the
aim of the new provincial government led by Joko Widodo when they expressed their plans to
implement odd-evens car restriction policy, Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) scheme, as well as
other policies to increase economic disincentives of driving private vehicles in Jakarta. This
policy might be successful in forcing some people to use public transports.

I believe that there are three things that can be done by Jakarta Residents to make Jakarta
free from traffic jam. First, reduce using private cars. What causes jakarta always be in traffic
jam is because everyone loves using their private cars. Even for going to near places, they still
use their cars although they can use bicycle, public transportation, or just take a walk. Second,
obey every single traffic rules. Besides number of cars, traffic jam is also caused by disobeying
traffic rules. Last, behave. Behave is also a solution for traffic jam. There are many cases which
shows bad behavior on the street that causes traffic jam.

Source :

 https://www.kompasiana.com/bonaventurapd/54f95dfba33311e9018b4c25/three-simple-
things-to-reduce-traffic-jam-in-jakarta
 http://www.klikbatavia.com/en/content/traffic-congestion-jakarta
 https://www.conservationinstitute.org/what-is-urbanization/
 https://jakartaglobe.id/commentary/fixing-indonesias-public-transport-woes/