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In-line skates traffic cops roll on roads to ease jams
Jakarta traffic police officers hit the road on inline skates Friday to manage traffic congestion in some South Jakarta areas
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Jakarta traffic police officers hit the road on inline skates Friday to manage traffic congestion in some South Jakarta areas.
Ten officers managed congestion along an intersection on Jl. Mampang Prapatan and Jl. HR Rasuna Said on their first day on the skates. They attracted the attention of hundreds of motorists.
The 10 officers were among a total of 21 policemen trained to use the inline skates.
The skates were expected to make police officers' jobs more efficient, as they allow them to move more easily and faster among vehicles, said the commander of the skating officers Second. Insp. Sutirto.
"None of them fell during their first day on duty," he said proudly.
He said the other 11 officers were assigned elsewhere that day.
"The officers were afraid and reluctant when they found out they had to learn inline skating two months ago. But after they learned how to do it, they realized the enjoyed skating very much," he said, smiling.
He said his squad practiced on Jl. Sudirman, Central Jakarta, on Thursday morning with him to gain confidence using the inline skates for their first day on Friday.
"The most difficult part in using the skates is, of course, balancing while skating in a zig-zag. It's so much fun once you can handle it," he said.
The police officers use their motorcycles to reach the congested area. They will use their inline skates to reach the heaviest spots to direct the traffic.
Sutirto said using inline skates enabled the officers to move quickly when their motorcycles were stuck in the congestion.
"The officers will park their motorcycles and put on their skates," he said.
He said city traffic police planned to deploy more officers to take an inline skating course to meet the demand.
He said he and his squad practiced three hours a day under the supervision of Buyung Suropati, a professional trainer from East Kalimantan, at Senayan sports complex in Central Jakarta. (ind)
