“We are still waiting for the [central] government to issue a regulation for the implementation of such a system,” Fauzi said.

“We don’t want to burden city residents with more charges or taxes with no legal basis.”  

Fauzi also said he wanted to ensure his administration would use the money collected from the ERP system to run programs to reduce traffic congestion in the city.

The central government is currently discussing the implementation of the ERP system to replace the existing high occupancy vehicle 3-in-1 policy, which is considered ineffective in easing the city’s severe traffic congestion.

Since its introduction in 1992, the 3-in-1 policy has required cars to have at least three people when travelling on certain city roads during rush hour.

However, motorists have ways around the law despite being facing sentences of up to a month in prison and fines of up to Rp 1 million (US$110).

Car owners use the services of “jockeys” if they want to use 3-in-1 roads but do not have enough passengers. Jockeys are paid to hitch a short ride.

With the ERP system — which consists of surveillance cameras and microchips — it would be easier for city authorities to force drivers carrying less than three passengers to pay extra fees.

In a bid to solve severe traffic congestion, authorities in the past 10 years have also considered introducing a system where cars with odd- and even-numbered license plates would take turns using roads, but the idea has never been implemented.

University of Indonesia urban transport planning expert Jachrizal Sumabrata urged the administration to use the delay to prepare a thorough plan to ensure that money collected from the ERP system would be transparently managed to improve the quality of the city’s public transportation.

“The government must introduce the plan to the public and convince the public that implementing ERP is actually a way to reward those who use public transportation,” he said.  

Once the system is implemented, Jachrizal said the administration still had to work hard to look for other feasible ways to tackle traffic problems as people would eventually agree to pay more to stay on
the road.   

“The city’s toll roads are a good example. No matter how high the rates, there is still congestion daily,” he said.

The ERP system is not a new initiative. Singapore, for example, has been charging its residents to use its roads since 1998.

Car owners in the city state are obliged to install special units on their windscreens that automatically send signals to automatic gates located above expressways and roads with heavy traffic.

These signals prompt the payment of road usage charges, which are drawn automatically from
cash cards implanted inside the units.

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