Anies Builds Permanent Bike Lane 2 Meters Wide, DPRD From The PDIP Faction: Narrowing The Road Bed

Permanent bicycle lane (Photo: Irfan Meidianto/VOI)

JAKARTA - The permanent bicycle route along Jenderal Sudirman Street to MH Thamrin which will be used this month has raised objections from the Regional House of Representative of DKI Jakarta (DKI DPRD). According to DKI DPRD Commission B Member, Gilbert Simanjuntak, the 2-meter width of the bicycle lane is considered excessive.

This is because the existing 63 kilometers of bicycle lane in a number of areas are only 1.5 meters wide. With a permanent bicycle lane width of 2 meters, according to Gilbert, it will further narrow the road.

"The governor's policy in the transportation sector is completely ignorant of prioritizing bicycle lanes that narrow the road to 2 meters wide. In fact, many bicycle lanes are not traversed by enough bicycles, and most of them become motorbike lanes and car parks," Gilbert told reporters, Sunday, February 28th.

It is nothing. Gilbert assessed that making a wider bicycle lane was not appropriate at this time. Because, there are still many people who mobilize using private vehicles.

"Jaklingko has not been running optimally. It has very little function. Meanwhile, the sidewalks have been enlarged, thus narrowing the lanes of cars and motorbikes," he said.

Therefore, Gilbert appealed to the Governor of DKI Jakarta Anies Baswedan to improve mass transportation facilities first. This is done by increasing the number of fleets, frequency, timeliness, and number of lines.

"This increase is intended to reach all regions in Jakarta. Only Jakarta, Manila, and Medellin implement privately-owned public transportation. The taxes collected should also be returned to the transportation sector, apart from education and health," he said.

As is known, if you cross Jenderal Sudirman Street, you will see a bicycle lane divider using white concrete, marked with a yellow-black line. The barrier is shaped like a linked chain.

Head of the DKI Jakarta Transportation Agency, Syafrin Liputo, said that his party was creating a permanent bicycle lane. The concrete becomes a barrier from bicycle users to other motorized vehicles.

Syafrin explained that the permanent bicycle lane will be installed along 11.2 kilometers with a width of 2 meters along Jenderal Sudirman Street to MH Thamrin Street. This barrier is made to resemble a chain because it has a Sabuk Nusantara (Belt of Nusantara) theme.

"The Sudirman-Thamrin permanent bicycle lane has the theme of Sabuk Nusantara with a representation of a planter box as a protection for a bicycle lane shaped like an interconnected chain," said Syafrin.

According to Syafrin, the arrangement of the bicycle lane barrier which has a width of about 2 meters symbolizes the second principle of Pancasila.

"The chain symbolizes the second principle, signifies the human relationship with each other that helps each other and also a form of collaboration, in which Jakarta is the city of collaboration," explained Syafrin.

Furthermore, Syafrin said that the permanent bicycle lane on this protocol road will be equipped with several facilities for cyclists. Among them are wayfinding, footrests at intersections in the bicycle lane, and rest areas in the form of a bike rack on the sidewalk.

Making this bicycle path costs around IDR 30 billion. The budget is not from the Local Government Budget, but rather from third-party compensation.

Given the wide road, Syafrin asked motorcyclists not to cross the bike path that will be used in March.

"Of course we will educate all motorists, be it motorized vehicles or bicycles, to use the lanes designated for each type of vehicle," said Syafirn.

To keep the bicycle lane sterile and safe for other riders, the DKI Jakarta Transportation Agency will ask the Traffic Directorate of Metro Jaya Police to supervise it.