Unfriendly Sidewalks In The 'Civilized City' Of DKI Jakarta

Sidewalk conditions in one corner of Jakarta (Iqbal / VOI)

JAKARTA - The move by DKI Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan, who tries to fix the sidewalks of the capital, has received criticism from the Pedestrian Coalition. The Chairman of the Pedestrian Coalition, Alfred Sitorus, assessed that the provincial government is still weak about enforcing the law on seizing pedestrians on sidewalks.

"Violations on the sidewalks seem to be ignored. That is the failure of city planning aimed at realizing a civilized city," said Alfred in Jakarta, as reported by Antara, Tuesday (29/10/19),

The phrase 'civilized city' refers to Anies' vision and mission in developing Jakarta. The former Minister of Education and Culture once echoed his desire to develop Jakarta as a civilized, just and prosperous area.

Alfred explained, based on the results of his team's social audit of the sidewalk revitalization process that was currently rolling massively at a number of points in Jakarta, there were several important problems. The social audit data is collected through the public complaint channel and the results of field inspections.

In conclusion, there are still many sidewalks that are not pedestrian friendly. The criteria for friendly sidewalks, according to Alfred, include being free from obstacles such as street vendors, illegal parking, shadow motorcycle taxi bases, and being safe for persons with disabilities.

In the Panglima Polim area, South Jakarta, a finding was that the sidewalk had collapsed due to frequent use as a bus parking area. In addition, residents have also closed the sidewalks using logs to block motorbikes who often pass by.

"I see that there are people who protect the sidewalks on foot, but they are mistaken about their role. This is proof that law enforcement is still weak in Jakarta," he said.

A number of special sidewalks for people with disabilities are also not yet sterile from obstacles that could threaten safety. For example, sidewalks that are blocked by electric poles, cables, and car parks.

"This is how the law is enforced. Don't let pedestrians be allowed to fight with predators who rob pedestrians of their rights," he said.