Friday, July 30, 2010 02:25 AM
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With the Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) project on its way, the Jakarta administration should integrate transportation development with spatial planning to ensure transportation routes serve residents living in densely populated areas, an expert says.
John A. Black, lecturer at the University of Sydney, Australia, said accomplishing that goal would require the administration to form a transit-oriented development (TOD) committee.
"Densely populated areas should be the priority for the TOD so that more city residents can enjoy the service," Black said Friday during a discussion about the integrated mass transit system.
Sustainable urban development should encourage people to use public transport, he said, adding the development of Rapid Bus Transit (BRT) and Mass Rapid Transit (MRT) should support each other.
"Besides building new transportation routes, the administration should also improve the quality of pedestrian walkways so residents can reach stations more easily," Black said.
The establishment of a TOD Committee would require a change in existing legislation, particularly those concerning land acquisition, he added.
To ensure policies and strategies relevant to mass transit areas, the committee should engage the private and public sectors and plan for the future extension of Jakarta's MRT, he said.
"The committee can support TOD by providing advice and funding and by coordinating research and development for related projects and initiatives," he said.
The Jakarta administration should heed the lessons learned from BRT projects in Australia and Nagoya, Japan, where land use was not coordinated with mass transit development, Black added.
"In Nagoya, the BRT development did not coincide with the city's overall development. As a result, the number of passengers is 50 percent less than that projected," he said.
As a result of uneven development, only some areas in Adelaide, Australia, became integrated urban villages, while in Brisbane, lack of mass transit options in outlying areas was responsible for greater population density in the city's center, raising the price of land 20 percent, due to the lack of TOD. The property gain was only enjoyed by land owners, not by the public, Black added.
"Those were the results of transit-adjacent development. We are trying to switch to transit-oriented development," he said.
Lisman Manurung, executive secretary of the Jakarta Transportation Council, agreed with Black's suggestion, saying TOD could help implement the city's master plan.
"The implementation of Jakarta's master plan has been a problem because it doesn't involve the private sector," Lisman said.
The committee should consist of experts, scholars and related individuals from the private sector.
When asked whether Black's suggestions would be submitted to the governor, Lisman said the council would consider the matter further.
