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Jakarta’s global traffic ranking improves, but congestion worsens
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Boxed in: Cars and motorcycles throng a road heading toward the Semanggi underpass in Jakarta on Oct. 10, 2023. (Antara/Suci Nurhaliza)
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akarta’s traffic was worse in 2023 than in the year before, even as its global traffic ranking improved slightly as measured by Dutch navigation firm TomTom.
The company’s annual report ranked Jakarta as the world’s 30th-most-congested city, down one place from 2022 when it placed 29th.
But despite the slight improvement, Jakartans actually spent more time in traffic last year than in 2022.
The average Jakartan spent a total of 117 hours driving in rush hours in 2023, or 10 hours and 21 minutes longer than in the previous year. Drivers also took an average of 23 minutes and 20 seconds to travel 10 kilometers last year, 40 seconds longer than in the previous year.
Jakarta had recorded improved congestion figures during the COVID-19 pandemic because of a decrease in public mobility amid health restrictions. At the height of COVID-19 outbreak in 2021, Jakarta placed 46th in the TomTom traffic index, the lowest in its history.
Read also: Yearender: Jakarta public transportation improves but many will still prefer cars
But much of the capital’s traffic has returned since 2022, when pandemic restrictions were eased and later lifted completely, although congestion levels are still below those of the pre-pandemic era, during which Jakarta regularly ranked among the 10 most congested cities in the world.
