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Car Free Day area tidier after zoning system applied
At least twice a month, Agung Devry, 26, takes the Transjakarta bus from Pluit, North Jakarta, to the Sarinah bus stop in Central Jakarta to jog at the Car Free Day (CFD) event
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span>At least twice a month, Agung Devry, 26, takes the Transjakarta bus from Pluit, North Jakarta, to the Sarinah bus stop in Central Jakarta to jog at the Car Free Day (CFD) event.
This week, he noticed something different.
“CFD can be very crowded when I want to focus on my run. However, it’s tidier now,” Agung said on Sunday.
Agung noticed that now street vendors were no longer operating on the streets.
Starting Nov. 3, the city administration launched a scheme to organize street vendors at CFD, by dividing the area of the event into three zones.
The red zone, located on Jl. Sudirman from the Wisma BNI 46 building to the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle and from there to Sarinah Mall, is strictly off limits to street vendors.
The yellow zone, located on Jl. Sudirman from the Youth Advancement Monument to the Wisma BNI 46 building and on Jl. MH Thamrin from Sarinah Mall to the Arjuna Statue, is open to street vendors but only on the available sidewalks.
The green zone, located on Jl. Karet Pasar Baru, Jl. Galunggung, Jl. Blora, Jl. Purworejo, Jl. Sumenep, Jl. Pamekasan, Jl. Teluk Betung, Jl. Kebon Kacang and Jl. Sunda, are free for street vendors to operate.
According to the Jakarta Public Order Agency (Satpol PP), up to 1,150 officers are stationed every week during CFD to keep the street vendors in the designated areas.
Satpol PP officers can be seen patrolling the area with bicycles to keep an eye on street vendors as well as other possible violators such as motorists or GrabWheels electronic scooter users attempting to enter the CFD area.
Street vendors are respecting the zoning system and obeying the restriction, although it means less customers for them.
Ismat, 42, used to sell serabi (rice flour pancake with coconut milk) from his small cart near the Hotel Indonesia (HI) traffic circle, a more strategic spot for business as more people could see his cart and buy from him.
Following the implementation of the zoning system, Ismat moved to near Dukuh Atas 1 bus stop.
However, Ismat said he had yet to decide whether to remain in his spot for the next CFD, as he got less customers than he did when operating near Bundaran HI.
Tia Zuliantia, 30, sells handbags and watches at CFD events, while on weekdays she sells them through online marketplace Shopee or her personal social media accounts.
Her usual spot is on the sidewalk near the Astra Tower, and because there is no rent she had to wake up early.
“The early bird gets the worm here. I am ready by 4:30 a.m.,” Tia said.
She said she had always stayed at her current spot as some of her customers recognized her and would sometimes ask if she had moved to another spot.
Prior to the zoning system, Tia set up her wares right on the street.
“It was more crowded back then. Now, people must enter [the sidewalk from the street]. When it was on the front [of the street], people would walk and immediately see my stall,” Tia said.
Jakarta Cooperatives, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and Trade Agency head Adi Ariantara said that according to Gubernatorial Regulation No. 2/2005 on Car Free Day, the main purpose of the CFD event, organized by Jakarta Transportation Agency, was to control air pollution, not to be a marketplace for street vendors.
“Car Free Days are for residents’ interactions and sports,” Adi told The Jakarta Post on Sunday
Adi said the street vendors were merely a “side effect” of the events, so the Jakarta administration had to organize them.
Agung agreed with the sentiment. “For me, CFD is for sports. If you want to go shopping, maybe go to Tanah Abang instead,” Agung said.
He said that although street vendors could still be helpful, such as to buy a drink or get some breakfast, the vendors were only a supportive facility of CFD, not the main attraction.
According to Adi, his agency was currently surveying the number and types of vendors operating during CFD events, including movements and locations as information and analysis for future policies on CFD
The agency had started surveying CFD street vendors on June 23, and found that 2,543 vendors participated in the event.
However, after the current zoning system was applied, the number of vendors actually increased, with 1,651 vendors in the green zone and 1,328 vendors in the yellow zone, totaling 2,959 vendors.
