Romanticization Of The Grandeur Of Jakarta: Camouflage From A City That Is Considered Inhumane

Illustration (Unsplash/Achmad al Fadh)

JAKARTA - Recently, the face of the city of DKI Jakarta has been widely discussed. Seen from the air, the portrait of the capital city does look slick. But unfortunately, this beauty seems to fade when we hear that Jakarta is often referred to as an inhumane city. What's the reason?

A video showing the face of the City of Jakarta has gone viral on Twitter social media. The video was uploaded by the @txtdrjkt account.

The account said that he did not expect that the video showing the splendor of the city which was dominated by the skyscrapers was Jakarta. "I think the city is in someone's country, or not in the city itself."

I think the city is in someone else's country, or not in your own city❤️ pic.twitter.com/9HKiyjemFF

— TXTDRJKT #VACCINATED (@txtdrjkt) August 24, 2021

The upload of the video became a debate among netizens. Some praised footage of the beauty of Jakarta. But mostly, residents commented sideways.

The owner of the @zarazettirazr account, for example, suggested not only exposing the shiny parts, because there are also many areas that look shabby. "As long as you don't always focus on the shiny ones and don't expose the slums. Jakarta isn't just the area in the video for a few seconds."

In addition, not a few netizens commented on the chaotic urban planning of Jakarta. The account @_aryodamar, for example, said that skyscrapers in the city actually make the air hotter and green open spaces are displaced. "Only certain people can enjoy skyscrapers."

Meanwhile, the @emilianaura account said that city planning and land use, to land conversion in Jakarta are also concerning. "So if you're salty (angry) because you only see a small number of good buildings in certain areas, it's only natural that many are angry."

Illustration (Unsplash/Adrian Pranata)

Bad city layout

The criticism of Jakarta's poor urban planning was affirmed by Rethinkgin the Future (RTF), a global architectural platform. RTF ranks Jakarta as "the worst-designed place in the world."

According to RTF, apart from Jakarta, the other worst urban planning areas are Dubai, Saudi Arabia; Brasilia, Brazil; Atlanta, United States of America; São Paulo, Brazil; Boston, United States of America; Missoula, United States of America; Naypyidaw, Myanmar; New Orleans, United States of America; and Dhanka, Bangladesh.

In its official website, RTF describes Jakarta as the capital city of a country that has high air pollution and a lot of polluted water. RTF stated that immature infrastructure planning interventions over the past few decades have led Jakarta to a poor quality of life.

These problems are mainly intertwined with the problem of inadequate green open space, extreme traffic congestion, and unplanned urban expansion. Meanwhile, the infrastructure development factor is in the hands of local governments, thereby reducing the possibility of implementing long-term projects.

Not a few people think of Jakarta as an inhumane city. The city planning is more friendly for four-wheeled vehicle users than pedestrians. So what is the root of the problem?

Root of the problem

To answer this question, VOI contacted Urban Planning Observer Yayat Supriatna. And according to him, the problem of bad urban planning in Jakarta is already deep-rooted.

Yayat explained, if you look at the master plan of urban planning from the past, Jakarta should have been designed to develop a rail-based public transportation network. "There is a model train network or LRT that should be a priority."

However, in the past, the authority of the railway was not the business of the regional government (provincial or city) but the business of the central government. After the Railway Law is enacted, then the local government can handle trains.

"So the LRT MRT appeared in DKI. So only now DKI is handling the trains," said Yayat.

Therefore, Yayat said, it was because we were late in the construction of the rail network. In the end, people rely on road roads.

Yayat gave an example, Tokyo, the number one megapolitan or largest metropolitan city in the world and wider than Jakarta, connects its surrounding cities by rail. "That's how extensive their rail network is."

"So, Japanese people who make cars rarely ride cars. In contrast to us, who prefer to bring cars," added Yayat.

This is in stark contrast to Jakarta, where the length of the train tracks is not sufficient. "Just build the MRT just north and south. That's where the problem lies."

In addition, rich Yayat, our government even since the New Order era, seems more happy to build roads. Especially toll roads. This is because from a business perspective, toll roads are considered more profitable than rail or public transportation.

"Public transportation, trains, everywhere are subsidized, so there is no interesting business. But if toll roads are business. Connect. The car factory continues to run, the toll road continues to be built," Yayat explained.

Automatically people prefer to ride a car. Compared to taking public transportation which is still limited.

"So why is it said to be less humane, because the construction of the railway network is late. So this city is more like a city for cars. That's the choice," said Yayat.

*Read other information about DKI JAKARTA or other interesting articles from Ramdan Febrian Arifin.

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