L

ong weekends are generally joyously celebrated by Jakartans, as they have the rare opportunity to momentarily escape from the hustle and bustle of the capital.

But the past two long weekends turned sour following a string of deadly traffic accidents in Puncak, a popular West Java getaway spot for Jakartans, raising concerns over the safety of land transportation in the area.

The latest accident occurred at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday, when a bus carrying a group of Jakarta gubernatorial election polling committees (PPS) from the North Kebayoran Lama sub-district, South Jakarta, bound for Cipanas in West Java collided with multiple vehicles traveling in the opposite direction in Ciloto subdistrict, Cianjur, West Java.

“As of now, 13 people have died and 17 others heavily injured. Hopefully there are no other [victims],” Cianjur Police traffic unit director Adj. Comr. Erik Bangun Prakasa told reporters on Sunday evening.

The victims were all admitted to the Cimacan Regional General Hospital.

According to an ongoing investigation, the accident was caused by a brake system malfunction on the bus, which lost control and hit three cars, four motorcycles and a public minivan.

Puncak is a favorite holiday destination for Jakartans and its roads are often clogged by tens of thousands of vehicles on weekends.

Sunday’s accident caused heavy congestion, leading to a traffic jam at least 11 kilometers long, Erik said.

Last week, another deadly collision involving multiple vehicles occurred on Jl. Raya Puncak in Megamendung district, Bogor regency, West Java, leaving four people dead and 20 others injured.

The accident happened when a tourist bus driven by Bambang Hernowo was heading to Jakarta from the Puncak area during the Isra Miraj (Ascension Day of Prophet Muhammad) holiday last Saturday.

The police later discovered that Bambang, now a suspect, did not posses a driver’s license or registration (STNK) for the bus.

Furthermore, none of the buses involved in the two accidents had proper permits, Transportation Ministry secretary-general Sugihardjo said on Monday.

“Based on our investigation, none of the tourist buses involved in the two accidents in Puncak had proper roadworthy certificates,” said the ministry’s secretary-general, Sugihardjo.

The ministry cannot revoke the permit of the buses’ operators either as they have no proper permit to operate the buses.

“We, therefore, will take legal action by reporting the bus operators to the police,” Sugihardjo said.

In light of the accidents, the Transportation Ministry released Regulation No.10/2017 regarding eligibility to operate public transportation.

Based on the regulation, the ministry will cooperate with the police and state-owned insurance company PT Jasa Raharja to search public vehicles on certain roads and places of interest to verify that they have valid licences and registration documents.

“This plan is not only a response the recent incidents but also because the mudik [annual return to hometowns to celebrate Idul Fitri] season is approaching,” he said.

A transportation expert from the Indonesian Transportation Society (MTI), Danang Parikesit, said that traffic regulation in Puncak had long been a problem, particularly because roads were used by both Jakartans on vacation and local public transportation, resulting in a chaotic traffic flow.

Following the string of accidents, road safety in the area should be thoroughly scrutinized, added Danang.

He pointed out that bus operators might have been negligent in maintaining safety procedures to provide basic safety for passengers.

“They [bus operators] have experienced commercial decline and that might have affected their quality,” Danang said. (dea)