T

he proposed use of counterflow lanes for the TransJakarta bus rapid transit, in which buses would travel in the direction of oncoming traffic, would be difficult to implement, the city transportation agency said.

Agency head Udar Pristono said putting in place counterflow lanes would be a logistical challenge.

“It would be more complicated to manage turns at intersections. Making U-turns would also be more complicated for motorists,” Pristono said Thursday.

He said a counterflow busway lane would also mean that the city would have to retrain busway operators.

“They are accustomed to driving in the right-most lane with passengers getting on and off on the right as well,” Pristono said.

He added that counterflow lanes would also create problems for pedestrians. The lane reversal would confuse pedestrians about to cross the street, he claimed.

Counterflow lanes were proposed by the police with the aim of keeping other vehicles off the busway lanes following a string of accidents in busway lanes. The Jakarta Police also suggested the construction of more pedestrian bridges to help minimize traffic accidents.

Police said there were 430 busway accidents in 2010, up from 303 in 2009. The city administration, however, is keen on maintaining the current parallel-flow lanes.

“If the objective is to prevent motorists from entering the lanes, then this is an issue of motorist discipline,” Pristono said.

Busway lanes are supposed to be at all times free of other vehicles according to a city bylaw.

Institute of Transportation Studies director Darmaningtyas echoed Pristono’s concerns that counterflow lanes would only cause more problems.

“It is likely we would have more accidents,” he told The Jakarta Post.

One of the reasons motorists encroached on busway lanes was because the lanes appeared empty and police were not watching.

“The lanes look empty because we don’t have enough buses. The city should allocate more buses,” he said.

Late last year, the city administration, the Jakarta Police, the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the Jakarta Transportation Agency formed a special traffic taskforce.

One of the main duty of the taskforce was to prevent motorists from entering busway lanes during rush hour.