Growing criticism from angry Jakartans has led the city administration to reconsider its plan to expand a ban on motorcycles from passing through the capital’s main thoroughfares.

“We cannot implement the regulation because of ongoing construction work. We will wait [until the work is finished],” Jakarta Transportation Agency head Andri Yansyah announced on Thursday morning after a meeting with Jakarta Governor Djarot Saiful Hidayat at City Hall.

Andri told journalists that criticism from various parties, including the City Council, had also fed into their decision to cancel their initial plan.

“The administration will wait until Jakarta has a better public transportation system. Sometime after the realization of the MRT and light rapid transit (LRT) systems as well as the integration of Transjakarta buses with commuter lines,” City Council speaker Prasetio Edi Marsudi said.

Philosopher Franz Magnis-Suseno in an article published recently by Kompas said motorcycles for low-income people constituted a precious good that helped them avoid dirty and unsafe public transportation for hours on end in the heavily congested city.

He called the plan to expand the ban “a form of war against the proletariat by the elites who ‘own’ this country.”

Construction of the much-anticipated MRT is currently ongoing along Jl. Sudirman. The construction has made Jakarta’s infamous traffic congestion even worse.

Popular

Volcano erupts in North Sulawesi, hundreds evacuated

Dubai roads, airport reel from floods after record rains

Ramadan boosts consumer confidence, retail sales