TheJakartaPost
Please Update your browser
Your browser is out of date, and may not be compatible with our website. A list of the most popular web browsers can be found below.
Just click on the icons to get to the download page.
Overloaded trucks to face strict penalties
The Transportation Ministry has vowed to start taking legal action against overloaded and over-dimension trucks starting on Aug
Change Size
T
he Transportation Ministry has vowed to start taking legal action against overloaded and over-dimension trucks starting on Aug. 1 in a bid to prevent damage to roads and to ease congestion.
At first, the policy will be carried out as a pilot project through revamped truck weigh stations in three locations, namely Indramayu and Karawang in West Java, and Tuban, East Java.
Sanctions will range from ticketing for overloading and instructions to remove excess freight, to prosecution.
“We will start law enforcement on [Aug.] 1 in those locations. If we can agree and this [implementation] goes ahead, not only can we maintain road [conditions] but we can also increase [traffic] speed,” Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said on Tuesday.
The minister noted that many overloaded trucks run at only half their normal speed, causing severe congestion on non-toll and toll roads. Furthermore, the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry previously said it had to spend more than half of its Rp 41.6 trillion (US$2.89 billion) budget on the repair and maintenance of roads and bridges.
The ministry’s latest evaluation between April 19 and May 30 at 11 weigh stations across the country recorded that almost half of the total 39,661 trucks were overloaded.
The majority of the trucks were found to carry 20 percent to 50 percent more than their designed capacity and 11 percent were found to carry double their permitted load capacity.
“The Jakarta-Karawang toll road is currently badly damaged, because trucks of 20-ton capacity are carrying loads of 40 tons,” he said.
Budi insisted the government would be strict in implementing the regulations regarding truck loads. However, he also said two trade associations, namely cement and steel associations, had opposed the plan to enforce the regulation.
The minister therefore instructed the Transportation Ministry director general for land transportation to send warning letters to both associations.
Budi added that the ministry would work with the private sector to operate the weigh stations, as there might not be sufficient human resources in the ministry to run the facilities.
Two weigh stations in Palembang, South Sumatra, and Dumai, Riau, will be the first two facilities to be run through cooperation with the private sector next year.
Following the handover of 141 weigh stations from regional transportation offices to the Transportation Ministry, the ministry now operates 21 weigh stations. This number will rise to 43 by September this year, its timeline shows.
The past operation of the weigh stations was allegedly riven with bribery involving truck drivers and officials, leading to legal action rarely being taken against overloaded trucks.
The ministry is also working with state survey company PT Sucofindo and state-owned surveyor PT Surveyor Indonesia to monitor the performance of the weigh stations across the country.
Transportation Ministry Director General for Land Transportation Budi Setiyadi said that for overloaded trucks, the owners rather than the drivers would be held accountable, While for over-dimension trucks, the owners and the chassis manufacturers could be held liable, with a minimum one-year prison term for violators.
The ministry will also work with the Supreme Court in enforcing the law.
“Most violations occur in Palembang, Lampung and Jambi,” he said.
Meanwhile, Indonesian Truck Operators Association (Aptrindo) vice chairman Kyatmaja Lookman said that in the short term from the start of enforcement on Aug. 1, there might be an increase in logistics costs for businesses.
