Editorial: Responsible motorcycle business

Sat, 09/13/2008 10:02 AM  |  Opinion

The motorcycle business continues booming in Indonesia, with producers like Honda, Suzuki and Yamaha aggressively promoting their products by showing off their technological advances and the affordability of their prices.

Buyers are lured with easy credit schemes. The government, including the Jakarta city government, is happy because the motorcycle boom provides lucrative revenues.

But do we ever stop to think that there is a heavy price we must pay for the flourishing motorbike market?

The public, including the riders, take most of the cost. If there is no action to address transportation problems, the growth in the number of motorcycles will be unstoppable. As long as the City does not have adequate public transportation systems, like the proposed mass rapid transportation system (MRT), this gloomy picture will continue, if not worsen.

The Jakarta City police say the number of motorcycles has reached 3.5 millions out of the total 5.7 million vehicles in the capital. This is a 300 percent increase in the number of motorbikes during the last four years.

According to data issued by the city police, 88 percent of more than 3,500 traffic accidents across the capital - killing some 720 people and wounding more than 4,000 -- involved motorcyclists, last year alone.

Minivan Mikrolets and medium-size Metromini bus drivers and owners complain they are facing extinction because of their passengers moving to motorcycles.

Look at the TV or print media advertisements. In their forceful advertisements, motorcycle producers rarely educate their customers on how to ride safely, or how to abide by traffic regulations. They promote speed, quality and the stylish mode of their products.

But how about safe driving? Perhaps the motorcycle producers have done more than we realize to educate riders and to help government in reducing traffic accidents. Perhaps they keep a low profile so only relatively few people know about their corporate social responsibility programs.

We do appreciate the strong presence of the vehicle industry because it generates major job opportunities, directly or indirectly. The taxes it pays to government are also an important source of revenue. We just want to remind the industry that it would be to the common good if it could play a greater role in sharing the burden of preventing, or mitigating, the negative impacts of vehicles on the streets.

We also owe a debt to motorcycle owners, because every year they pay their vehicle tax. With their vehicles they can access lower cost transportation for their daily lives. However, the behavior of many motorists on the street is worrying. This is especially so because the road capacity of Jakarta can't accommodate the rising number of vehicles.

In a city with seriously chaotic traffic conditions like Jakarta, are the growing number of motorcycles part of the solution or part of the problem? The answer is both, depending on who answers the question and how we see transportation issues.

For many urban workers, motorcycles are part of the solution because with them they can cut their transportation costs, which is urgent following the fuel price increases. But the expansion of the motorcycle fleet has sparked new problems for urban traffic in general, including an increase in accidents, worsening traffic congestion and increased traffic violations.

The Jakarta city administration has considered various solutions to address this problem, including providing motorcycles with special lanes or by reinforcing policies introduced last year, prohibiting motorcycles from entering certain roads.

We endorse any plans to address the problems arising from the motorcycle boom. However, any solutions should comprehensively address the whole transportation problem in the capital.

Unfortunately, the growing popularity of motorcycles is leading to new problems.

The data on traffic accidents shows they have reached an alarming level. Motorcyclists are considered to be the most reckless road users. This is partly because there is no special training for driving motorcycles.

Meanwhile, driving licenses are easily obtained without taking into account the riding skills of the applicants. Many unlicensed riders, including under age children, are often seen driving motorcycles on the streets. Such practices not only endanger motorcyclists themselves, but also other road users.

The most important solution is that the city has to go ahead with its plans to improve public transportation services and provide alternatives to the general public. This is the only permanent solution to the terrible traffic problems in Jakarta.

Meanwhile, motorcycle producers, who have gained windfall profits from a booming market, need to bear in mind their moral and social responsibilities to the public good and help share the burden of resolving transport problems.

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