Toll road bus stops still a necessary evil

The Jakarta Post ,  Jakarta   |  Wed, 10/08/2008 10:28 AM  |  City

OUT OF LINE: Passengers and street vendors wait for a bus at the Kebon Jeruk tollgate in West Jakarta on Tuesday. Although picking up and dropping off passengers at tollgates is illegal, many public buses still do so. (JP/P.J. Leo)

Buses stopping illegally to pick up passengers from toll gates are endangering both drivers and commuters.

While some of these makeshift stops have been causing serious problems for almost a decade, government and toll management bodies are still searching for the ideal solution.

One such stop is at the Kebon Jeruk toll gate in West Jakarta.

Sulis, a lecturer at the Bina Nusantara University, waits at this stop en route to Bandung every day after her lessons.

On one steamy afternoon in September last week, Sulis, along with other passengers, waited in the heat for a bus to arrive.

While some buses arrive and stop frequently, the partitioned area separated by a low wall is an illegal drop-off and pick-up point and leads to irregular services.

"I usually wait for half an hour to an hour. There is no clear time schedule here," Sulis said.

Furthermore, there is no shelter, toilet or adequate lighting at the stop, and the absence of a pedestrian crossing means passengers cross heavy traffic or the tollway itself to reach the stop.

The head of traffic service, security and discipline and the head of maintenance at the tollway operator PT Jasa Marga, Dadang Sumaryana, said his company was aware of the situation and had put up a notice deterring people from crowding the space.

He said the company would prefer people did not use the tollways as stops, but saw no real alternative to the problem.

"The bus must not stop at any part of the toll roads. However, they do it anyway along the road, so we fenced off the two bus lanes and created a specific place for them to make it safer for everyone. It should have been only temporary but it has been there for around 10 years," Dadang said.

The company provides a small triangular cemented space for people to wait but many passengers opt for the sides of the lane.

"Once, a person was hit by the bus door because the bus stopped too close to the waiting passengers who stand at the side of the bus lane," Naim, a newspaper seller, said.

Dadang said the company would not provide any bus stop facilities nor widen the area because stopping at toll roads was actually illegal.

The company has brought the matter to the attention of the government several times, Dadang said, suggesting a proper terminal be constructed in the areas of concern.

"People need terminals nearby to access the buses. There is none in the area so people resort to stopping the buses at the toll road," he said.

However, Hendah Sunugraha, the head of Land Transportation Management at the city's Transportation Agency, said new terminals were not the solution and none would be built in those areas.

"What we need is a good transportation system with good connecting points as we plan in the Macro Transportation Pattern. It is the integration of the inner city transportation system, which focuses on bus ways, and long haul transportation means. It involves the feeder buses, the trunk lines, Busway (city bus), trains and water buses," Sunugraha said.

He cited the traffic situation at CSW junction in Kebayoran Baru, South Jakarta, as an example.

"The public transportation vehicles were really messy there. It was like a market and the traffic was bad. But once we improved the system, the traffic became really smooth," he said.

He admitted the goal was still far away.

"The stops (at the toll gate) will have to end, but we still need time to achieve that. The Busway is only ready for seven out of the 15 routes planned. The monorail and river boat are also not ready," he said.

Until then, passengers will have to brace themselves against the heat, rain and danger of fast passing cars while drivers must pay attention to jaywalkers.

Tulus Abadi of the Indonesian Consumer Agency (YLKI) said the government should maximize the role of existing bus terminals to reduce the illegal stops.

"Historically they (stops) were project-oriented rather than based on people's demand, so their locations are not strategic. Also, most terminals are unsafe with lots of pickpockets and middlemen which make customers feel uncomfortable," Tulus said.

He said the consumers were at a disadvantage under the conditions.

"Their (customers') rights are reduced if buses are moved outside the terminals, as criminal acts occur and drivers have been known to impose irregular fees," he said. (mri)

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