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Jakarta Post

Parking problems revealed on first day of heavy fines

Towing the line: Members of the Jakarta Transportation Agency tow a car that had been parked illegally on Jl

The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
Tue, September 9, 2014 Published on Sep. 9, 2014 Published on 2014-09-09T09:39:12+07:00

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span class="caption">Towing the line: Members of the Jakarta Transportation Agency tow a car that had been parked illegally on Jl. Jatinegara Raya in East Jakarta on Monday. The city administration has begun implementing its new drive to curb illegally parked cars, which will be towed, and the drivers fined a hefty Rp 500,000 (US$42.71). JP/DON

Dozens of drivers watched helplessly on Monday as their illegally parked cars were towed away and they were fined heavily as the city administration began its crackdown on illegal parking.

Transportation Agency officials deflated the tires of the 33 cars that were parked illegally on Jl. Kebon Kacang Raya leading to the Thamrin City mall in Central Jakarta.

The cars'€™ owners had used the valet service provided by the mall management. However, the raid by the Transportation Agency on Monday revealed that the mall did not have a permit allowing their customers to park on the side of the road.

Although the agency had given the owners an hour to move their cars, many did not arrive and so were fined.

To the dismay of many Jakarta motorists, the raid conducted around Thamrin City was not the only one held on Monday. Other raids were carried out in several parts of the city by the Transportation Agency to enforce the bylaw.

A recently enacted bylaw stipulates that drivers will have their illegally parked vehicles towed away and will have to pay a fee of Rp 500,000 (US$42.71) for each day the car is impounded.

Furthermore, the drivers will also be ticketed by the police and have to pay a fine of Rp 500,000.

An employee of PT Kejar Bank Indonesia, who preferred to remain anonymous, discovered his car had been towed away while he was delivering money to an ATM in Tanah Abang, Central Jakarta, as reported by tribunnews.com.

He complained that he needed to park his car while doing his job but there was no parking space provided. '€œSo, where should I park?'€ he asked.

A taxi driver had his cab towed because he had parked it illegally and fell asleep while waiting for fares at the Kalibata City mall in South Jakarta. Two other cars were also towed in the same area, according to kompas.com.

Jakarta Transportation Agency head Muhammad Akbar told reporters that the fine was set deliberately high in order to make motorists think twice before parking illegally.

'€œWe hope that by strictly enforcing the regulation, the general public will realize that the city administration is serious about tackling illegal parking,'€ he said at City Hall on Monday.

Equipped with 15 tow trucks, the agency is currently concentrating on illegal parking in Tanah Abang (Central Jakarta), Kalibata (South Jakarta), Jatinegara (East Jakarta), Marunda (North Jakarta) and Beos (West Jakarta).

The Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) and the Jakarta Police are also assisting the agency by launching raids and supervising areas where illegal parking is rife.

According to Akbar, the impounding of vehicles only applies to four-wheeled vehicles, while illegally parked motorcycles will only have their tires deflated.

'€œWe will only issue them tickets, not tow away their vehicles,'€ he said.

Separately, Jakarta Police traffic director Sr. Comr. Restu Mulya Budiyanto told The Jakarta Post that the police would support the imposition of the substantial fines provided the Transportation Agency was consistent in enforcing the regulation.

'€œThere is every chance that this method will be extremely effective in tackling illegal parking, which has contributed to the city'€™s major traffic problem. However, we must ensure there are no exceptions for anyone, no matter who they are,'€ he said.

Jakarta Deputy Governor Basuki '€œAhok'€ Tjahaja Purnama said the heavy fines were the only way to stop people from parking illegally, as the previous method of simply deflating tires had not worked.

'€œJakarta residents are more afraid of being fined than of being hit by a train. Even if it'€™s a close call, drivers will try to cross railroads as long as they don'€™t lose money,'€ he said. (fss)

- Dewanti A. Wardhani contributed to the story

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