Jakartans love motorcycles and for some, they are willing to fight for their right to use motorcycles on the streets following the announcement of a future ban restricting their movements across the city.

Affordable operational costs and easy maneuvering are the top two reasons why motorcycles are so popular in Jakarta. Amid a traffic-clogged city, riders can easily slip in between lines of traffic and jammed cars, contributing to the growing popularity of online-based motorcycle transportation services, or ojek.

As of June this year, there are 13.64 million motorcycles registered with the Jakarta Police, nearly three times the 4.81 million cars registered.

However, the presence of such a large number of motorcycles is deemed dangerous by the city administration, which claims that the majority of traffic violators are motorcycle riders. Their growing numbers and concerns around safety issues have prompted the city administration to begin a trial imposing wider motorcycles restrictions. Motorcycles have been barred from passing through the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle to Jl. Medan Merdeka Barat in Central Jakarta since 2014 and a wider ban is going to implemented from the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle to the Senayan traffic circle. The trial is set to run for a month from Sept. 12 before being officially imposed on Oct. 11. The main thoroughfares have lines of office buildings and hotels along parts of Transjakarta Bus corridor 1 connecting Blok M in South Jakarta to Kota in West Jakarta. The ban follows a 2014 city bylaw that allows the administration to ban motorcycles from passing through certain areas, based on the 2011 Law on Traffic Management and Engineering.

But the plan has met with strong opposition from riders. A resounding “no” has been expressed by riders, who claim that the policy is discriminative, especially given the fact that the city’s public transportation system is still unreliable. Several motorcycle rider groups have formed an alliance to oppose the restrictions.

Rio Octaviano from the Road Safety Association said the policy would force motorcyclists, especially those in the lower-middle classes, to dig deep into their pockets to reach their destinations. With motorcycles, riders can spend just Rp 50,000 (US$3.70) on up to four days’ worth of gas. But after the ban, riders will have to park their motorcycles in parking spots before continuing their travels on public transportation. They will also need to spend more money to be mobile if they leave their motorcycles at home.

”If you want to limit us, please consider our economic condition. How much money should we spend to use public transportation?” he said during a press conference on Sunday.

To show their opposition, the alliance plans to hold a protest against the policy on Sept. 9. At least 5,000 riders are expected to join the protest, Rio claimed. In the protest, the riders will ride along in a convoy throughout the restricted area.

“The protest is designed to remind the administration that bikers also pay taxes used for the development of the city,” he said.

Meanwhile, Jakarta Legal Aid (LBH Jakarta) director Alghiffari Aqsa lambasted the lack of transparency and public participation in the administration’s policy planning.

There have been no comprehensive studies on the policy, he said, adding that LBH Jakarta would also assist biker groups to meet with Jakarta administration and City Council leaders to discuss the policy.

Despite the animosity, the city administration is sticking to its guns citing road safety concerns. According to Sigit Widjatmoko, the deputy head of the Jakarta Transportation Agency, motorcycle riders are the number one traffic violators, with around 60 percent of traffic accidents in the city involving motorcycles. Last year, 499 people passed away in motorcycle accidents, while 70 people were killed in car accidents.

“We hope this policy will reduce the number of road accidents involving motorcycles,” Sigit told The Jakarta Post on Sunday.

Popular

Reform era draws to a close

Essay competition: ‘Rethinking work: Driving sustainable growth in the digital age’

A Fold in Time: Southeast Asia's women artists explore identity, history