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Deadly accident prompts calls for traffic light removal
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Firemen are seen hosing down a fuel distribution truck that caused a deadly traffic accident at an intersection in Bekasi, West Java on July 18. The truck, which was transporting 25 tons worth of biofuels, plowed into two cars and 10 motorcycles waiting at a traffic light at the bottom of a sloping road, allegedly due to faulty brakes. Nearly a dozen people died in the accident. (Antara/Asprilla Dwi Adha)
A
n online petition to remove traffic lights at a Cibubur intersection has so far garnered over 30,000 signatures following a deadly accident involving a Pertamina truck on Monday.
The accident occurred when the truck experienced a brake failure on the downward slope of a road known locally as Transyogi, plowing into two cars and 10 motorcycles that were waiting at the traffic lights in question.
The Change.org petition, which was started by a user named Umi N, aims to gather 50,000 signatures. There is no set deadline for the appeal.
The accident left 10 people dead and five severely injured. The Jakarta Police Traffic Corps’ accident analysis team is still investigating the incident, police commissioner Latif Uman told reporters on Wednesday.
Videos of the accident quickly circulated on the internet, followed by a swarm of criticism from shocked netizens who called for a traffic modification that would eliminate the traffic lights. Many who are familiar with the location of the accident said that the traffic lights at the end of the steep road are problematic and precarious.
The traffic lights had been put in place recently, reportedly to accommodate a Ciputra Group development project, which features a new housing complex across from the CitraGrand central business district in Bekasi, West Java.
Read also: 3,250 died in traffic accidents in West Java in 2019
“[This was done] despite the contour of the road, which slopes downward both in the direction of Jakarta and Cileungsi. As suspected, the traffic lights have caused casualties,” the petition reads.
“Was the safety of road users neglected for the sake of a development project?”
Ciputra Group director Harun Hajadi told Kompas.com that he would soon discuss with the Bekasi Transportation Agency about removing the traffic lights, emphasizing that the development corporation is “deeply concerned” about the fatal accident. He also noted that he was unaware of when the traffic lights were installed in the first place.
Harun then reminded the media that brake failure was also a major contributing factor to the tragedy.
“It must be known that the truck had faulty brakes, while the traffic was congested. I yield this issue to the municipal government of Bekasi and its official facilities,” he said.
“Whatever [the municipal government] decides, we will surely oblige and make our suggestions.”
Police have arrested the two truck drivers who survived the accident under a traffic law violation, though they are still being held as witnesses. Pertamina has also announced that it is committed to “taking full responsibility” for the fatal accident.
