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n Jakarta’s crowded streets, public minibuses called Metromini and Kopaja are a source of irritation for other road users. Not only because of their daredevil maneuverings but their thick, black, exhaust fumes endanger our lungs.

There have been a lot of accidents involving minibuses since they first hit the Jakarta streets 30 years or so ago, the worst being the plunge of a Metromini into the polluted Sunter River in North Jakarta in 1994. A total of 33 passengers were killed. The driver was convicted of murder and sentenced to 15 years in prison, despite his pleas that he never had any intention to kill.

Only recently, an angry mob wrecked a Metromini on Jl. Otista Raya in East Jakarta and beat its driver after it sideswiped a motorcycle, severely injuring a woman. The accident happened as the minibus attempted to exit the dedicated TransJakarta lane.

Life is not easy for the minibus driver. They have to seek every avenue to win the race for passengers. They cannot return home empty-handed because they have to pay a rental fee to the bus owners, buy meals, water, often cigarettes and the energy drinks that will keep them awake. They also have to deal with threats and extortion from thugs and police officers. But does the public care about these pressures on minibus drivers every day?

Within such a free-for-all, it would be quite naive to expect drivers to comply with traffic regulations (including road worthiness), care for the safety of their passengers or worry about eco driving.

The initiative of Jakarta Governor Joko Widodo, or Jokowi, to rejuvenate more than 4,200 public minibuses is therefore more than interesting.

Governor Jokowi, on his second day in office, proposed a new management system of public minibus which offers subsidies and grants to Metromini and Kopaja operators, with a view to easing their operational costs which in turn will help them improve services. While details of the new scheme remain unavailable, or perhaps are being formulated, the move has sparked new hopes for better management of public transportation.

Head of Jakarta transportation agency Udar Pristono says the planned subsidies are legal under Home Minister Regulation No. 32/2011. The problem, however, rests with the availability of funds as the rejuvenation program will cost a lot or worse may sacrifice other programs.

Udar has indicated that the Jakarta government will consider phasing out many aging, polluting public minibuses as a multi-year project. It may not be completed even by the end of Jokowi’s five-year term in 2017, but his intention to address one of the most challenging transportation problems facing the city shows his quick alignment to Jakarta’s real life.

Given the challenges in the rejuvenation of Metromini and Kopaja, political support from the city council is imperative. No less crucial is advice from public transportation stakeholders, including minibus operators, transportation experts and the public as end users.

Any program should result in a reliable and convenient public transportation, unless the public are reluctant to park their private cars at home. On the supply side, minibus drivers will no longer crack under the pressure scrambling to make ends meet.

Jokowi’s move to tame the reckless minibus drivers only marks the start of the test of his competence to lead Jakarta.