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City set to build boom gates on busways to bar cars
In a bid to reduce the number of accidents involving Transjakarta buses, the city administration will construct boom gates in several busway lanes in 2010 to prevent private vehicles entering, a City Transportation Agency official says
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n a bid to reduce the number of accidents involving Transjakarta buses, the city administration will construct boom gates in several busway lanes in 2010 to prevent private vehicles entering, a City Transportation Agency official says.
City Transportation Agency traffic management chief Muhammad Akbar said Monday that the 35 planned portals would also decrease bus travel time because private vehicles would not obstruct their path.
However, Akbar said Transjakarta buses would still share lanes with private vehicles on Jl. Pondok Indah Raya on Corridor 8, which connects Harmoni in Central Jakarta to Lebak Bulus in South Jakarta.
“There are no road separators between the busway corridor and private vehicles there, so we can’t construct a boom gate,” he said.
Akbar added that the busway lane in Jl. Pondok Indah Raya was for private vehicles and Transjakarta buses.
“There will be no portal around that area,” he said.
Transjakarta operator Badan Layanan Umum (BLU) announced Friday that from January to October this year there had been 268 accidents involving Transjakarta buses.
The rate of accidents has increased each year, the BLU said, with the increasing number of corridors.
Sixty-six accidents were recorded in 2007 and 167 in 2008.
This year’s tally include 12 fatalities, 36 serious injuries and 220 minor injuries.
The highest number of accidents was on Corridor 3, between Kalideres and Harmoni.
BLU chief Daryati Asrining Rini said that most accidents were caused due to motorists straying onto the busway, while some were due to bus driver negligence.
As of October, city police recorded more than 5,000 traffic accidents in Jakarta, Depok, Tangerang and Bekasi, killing 823 people and injuring more than 6,000 peopleThe National Police estimated an average of 30,000 people die every year due to traffic accidents.
Akbar said that currently the agency had placed six boom gates in five locations.
Two portals were placed on Jl. Buncit Raya in South Jakarta and one on Jl. Matraman Raya in East Jakarta, Jl. Letjen Soeprapto, Jl. Galur in Central Jakarta and Jl. Daan Mogot in West Jakarta.
The portals are currently manually operated by Transjakarta staff.
On June 1, a man crossing Jl. Letjen Suprapto died instantly after being hit by a Transjakarta bus.
Earlier in April, a couple riding a motorcycle were hit by a Transjakarta bus on Jl. Raya Daan Mogot in West Jakarta.
The woman died, and her husband was severely injured.
Akbar said that the new devices would be electronically operated.
“It will not slow down Transjakarta bus travel time,” he said.
“Travel time will be faster.
“Logically, if private vehicles don’t enter busway lanes, buses can travel faster,” he said.
The portal locations will be deployed from Corridor 2 to Corridor 8.
“We want to set them up as soon as possible in 2010.
“We’re currently carrying out surveys.
“We will hold a tender for the installment of the portals,” he said.
He said that the cost of one boom gate would be around Rp 35 million (US$3,600), totaling around
Rp 1.225 billion.
