The plan was first uttered during a recent meeting between the House of Representatives Commission III overseeing legal and security affairs and National Police chief Gen. Listyo Sigit Prabowo on June 16.

During the meeting, NasDem Party politician Ahmad Sahroni asked the police chief to consider removing bike lanes across the city so the portion of the streets could be repurposed for all kinds of road users.

The Jakarta administration has been constructing 63 kilometers of bike lanes across the capital, including the 11-kilometer protected lanes along Jl. Sudirman and Jl. MH Thamrin from South to Central Jakarta. The bike lanes use a portion of the streets and are equipped with concrete planters as protective barriers and directional signage. 

The administration is planning to add an additional 101 kilometers of bike lanes by the end of the year.

“[Safety] risks along Jl. Sudirman and Jl. MH Thamrin should be faced equally by every road user,” Ahmad said during the meeting on June 16, streamed by the House’s internal television station TV Parlemen on YouTube.

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He added there should not be any “discrimination in the form of bike lanes” for sport cyclists, bicycle commuters and other road users.

Listyo responded by saying that the police agreed with the notion that the permanent bike lanes should be dismantled: “Bike lanes could still exist, but they should only be imposed at specific times of day and should not disturb other road users.”

He added the police would coordinate with the Transportation Ministry, local police and regional administrations about the implementation of bike lanes. Listyo also said the police would mull over Ahmad’s suggestion by comparing the bike lane implementation in Indonesia with that in other countries.

Over the past month, the provincial administration has found itself juggling ways to appease motorists, sport cyclists and bicycle commuters. Sport cyclists were recently criticized for their apparent domination of the road, with many saying they often make it difficult for motorists to pass, even though there is a protected bike lane on Jl. Sudirman.

In response to the criticisms, the administration is considering allowing cyclists to ride outside designated bike lanes on Jl. Sudirman and Jl. MH Thamrin on weekdays from 5 a.m. to 6:30 a.m. Jakarta has also been testing the Kampung Melayu-Tanah Abang flyover in Central Jakarta as a designated cycling area on weekends from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m.

Transportation experts said the police should not quickly agree to the plan to dismantle bike lanes as the street would accommodate various kinds of mobility, ranging from bicyclists to motorized vehicles.

“Forcing them onto one street [by dismantling the bike lanes] would create chaos and endanger everyone involved,” Faela Sufa of the Institution for Transportation and Development Policy Indonesia said.

She added the police should act as law enforcement for any traffic violators, including bicyclists, as several regulations have stipulated restrictions for road users. The 2009 Traffic and Land Transportation Law and a 2020 transportation ministerial regulation on bicycle safety regulate how cyclists should behave on the street, including the 25 kilometers per hour speed limit in bike lanes.

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Jakarta Transportation Council head Haris Muhammadun said bike lanes were an important part of sustainable transportation development alongside public transportation and pedestrian facilities.

Meanwhile, Ombudsman Jakarta head Teguh Nugroho said the police chief should not immediately agree on the request before holding a discussion with the Jakarta administration and the public as well as conducting evidence-based studies.

He added the bike lanes were built as mandated by the 2020 transportation ministerial regulation, mandating bike lanes to be separated by a separator with lanes for regular vehicles.

Jakarta Deputy Governor Ahmad Riza Patria said the administration was still mulling over Listyo’s suggestion to make the bike lanes temporary rather than constructing them permanently.

“The Jakarta administration will issue policies that will benefit all people, whether they are sport cyclists, bicycle commuters, pedestrians, motorists on private vehicles or public transportation users,” he said on June 16, as quoted by tribunnews.com.