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Jakarta Post

Motorists demand solution after park-and-ride lot removal

Anies Baswedan (JP/Seto Wardhana)More facilities should be available on the outskirts of JakartaWhen the Jakarta administration said it would establish more park-and-ride facilities on the outskirts of Jakarta, it decided to close down one located downtown

Sausan Atika (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Thu, September 12, 2019

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Motorists demand solution after park-and-ride lot removal

Anies Baswedan (JP/Seto Wardhana)

More facilities should be available on the outskirts of Jakarta

When the Jakarta administration said it would establish more park-and-ride facilities on the outskirts of Jakarta, it decided to close down one located downtown.

Banners giving notice of the impending closure have been placed on the fence of the 8,710 square-meter parking lot on Jl. MH Thamrin.

The park-and-ride facility is only open on weekdays with a daily rate of Rp 5,000 (US 35 cents), Rp 2,000, and Rp 1,000 per car, motorbike and bicycle, respectively. The facility has been in operation since April 2017.

Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan said the plan aimed to encourage motorists to switch to public transportation. The area will be transformed into a dining spot to also benefit small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

Anies explained the decision was based on the fact that parking rates along Jl. MH Thamrin, which is among main roads in the city, were “too low”.  

“[If the parking rates are low] who will take public transportation? Everyone will use their own [vehicle]. That’s very rational,” he told reporters recently.

The governor went on to say that a higher parking rate would soon follow and that the city was preparing the policy.

Dhani Grahutama, the head of administrative section at the administration’s Parking Management Unit, echoed the governor’s statement, saying a park and ride was ideally located in the urban edge thus lessen the number of vehicles heading toward the downtown.

The Thamrin parking facility accommodates more than 200 motorcycles and 200 cars per day, contributing to nearly Rp 2 million in parking revenue per day. The revenue is more or less the same compared to other park and rides throughout the city.

Jakarta has eight park and ride facilities, including the one in Thamrin, under the management of the agency’s parking management unit, city-owned company PT Jakarta Propertindo and private company PT Intiland Development.

The plan to close the Thamrin parking area has drawn criticism from regular commuters.

Bekasi resident Anggit Subroto regularly parks his car in the parking lot because his wife works around 500 meters from the facility. He then continues his commute to his workplace in the Mega Kuningan business district in South Jakarta on a public bus.

The 39-year-old lamented the plan, which he believed would be ineffective in reducing the number of vehicles on the road. 

“It is better to have this facility rather than have motorists leave their cars scattered around the Thamrin area. This facility has helped many people [with their commute],” he told The Jakarta Post at the location on Thursday.

Anggit said if only other park and ride facilities were available near public transportation systems along his commute route, he would definitely make use of them.

“The advantage of stopping in Thamrin is that there are many [public transportation] options,” he added.

Similar to Anggit, Melisa Halim, 27, who regularly commutes from Cempaka Putih in Central Jakarta to the Sudirman Central Business District (SCBD) in South Jakarta, parks her car in the facility and continues her trip using Transjakarta.

The closure of the park and ride would mean racking her brain to find an alternative as she would have to allocate more time for her commute and spend at least three times she did now to use public transportation.

“I would also need to change buses in the middle of the trip,” she said at the location.

Vincent, 29, who commutes by car from Kalideres, West Jakarta, to Thamrin, said people would be encouraged to leave their vehicles if public transportation options were comfortable.

As someone who occasionally used Transjakarta services, he said the buses were “adequate but not comfortable enough”.

“People who use their own vehicles are looking for comfort. I find it difficult to get on and off buses during peak hours,” he told the Post.

Vincent supported the idea of turning the parking facility into a dining spot, saying people working in the area would be happy to have more dining options.  

On the other hand, Anggit is worried the place will only attract more motorists or motorcyclists.

“Still, they would park in buildings along Thamrin, right?” he asked.

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