W

here is no way of escaping it. Day or night, weekdays or weekends, thousands of road users inch slowly to their destinations.

The capital of Southeast Asia’s largest country is among the cities with the world’s worst traffic and, ironically, it is getting worse as the city administration attempts to alleviate the problem.

Ongoing projects aim to expand road networks and public transportation. From rail-based transportation projects, such as the MRT and the light rail transit (LRT), to overpasses and underpasses, construction for several projects is occurring at the same time.

Much criticism on the simultaneous projects has fallen on deaf ears. Former governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama had aimed to revolutionize the city in many ways.

With almost 5 million cars and 14 million motorcycles, vehicles spill over onto Jakarta’s streets, sidewalks, idle plots and parking spaces.

Feeling the pinch of its poor traffic planning, the administration has announced a plan to discourage the use of private vehicles by increasing taxes on parking. So expect to pay higher parking fees and vehicle-ownership transfer fees (BBN-KB).

In 2011, Colliers International’s Global Parking Rate Survey named Jakarta the city with the world’s lowest parking fees, with daily parking rates at Rp 9,186 (69 US cents). After a steady increase, parking fees are now Rp 4,000 per hour for cars and Rp 2,000 per hour for motorcycles.

Unsurprisingly, even despite the low parking fees, few vehicles are left at home. The park-and-ride system, for example, lacks parking space for commuting motorists. Public transportation modes such as trains and Transjakarta buses have yet to be seamlessly integrated in all parts of the city.

City Secretary Saefullah said motorists might shift to public transportation if they were required to pay
Rp 100,000 a day for parking.

In Sydney and London, the two most expensive cities in the world to park in, according to Parkopedia’s 2017 Global Parking Index, motorists spend on daily parking fees an average of $46.7 and $45.01, respectively.

Imposing higher parking rates, however, should ideally be accompanied by a sufficient number of parking spots for the park-and-ride system and other traffic policies.

It all comes down to the administration’s commitment to ease congestion. After all, revenue from vehicle-related fees — the BBN-KB fees, the motorized vehicle tax (PKB) and the fuel tax — account for about one-fifth of the city budget, which is Rp 70 trillion this year. With the current sluggish sales of cars and motorcycles, the administration might consider implementing changes that upset motorists.

There could be temporary and pragmatic solutions, such as the banning of motorcyles from main thoroughfares. But drastic policies, such as a significant increase in parking fees, would likely increase the use of public transportation. Loud complaints on the shortcomings of public transportation from those using private vehicles would hopefully drive faster the improvement of buses and trains, and help us, as the saying goes, from “growing old on the road.”