Governor says Jakarta has 'too few' cyclists

Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo says he wants to see more people on bicycles on the streets of the nation's capital.

Fauzi said he wanted to increase the numbers of Jakarta's estimated 100,000 cyclists each year. More facilities for cyclists would be provided by the administration, he said.

"The number [of bicyclists] should be proportional. Jakarta has 9.6 million inhabitants, so I guess 100,000 people riding bicycles is not too much,'' Fauzi said on Sunday in South Jakarta during the inauguration ceremony for the Indonesian Bicycle Committee's central executive board, as quoted by tribunnews.com online news portal.

He said he was optimistic the number of cyclists in the capital would continue to increase, citing an increase in TransJakarta Busway passengers and improvements in facilities.