Jokowi Emphasizes Jakarta Traffic Jams Make Indonesia Lose Rp65 Trillion in Memory of Today, January 8, 2019
JAKARTA - Today's memory, seven years ago, January 8, 2019, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) emphasized that the Jakarta City traffic jam made the country lose as much as Rp. 65 trillion per year. Traffic jams are considered the main cause of the increase in vehicle operating costs and wasted time.
Previously, Jokowi assessed that the problem of Jakarta traffic jams must be immediately resolved. This condition is because traffic jams bring many problems. Traffic jams not only make a lot of time wasted. Traffic jams can also make the distribution of logistics disrupted and lose money.
There is no doubt about Jakarta's existence as a magnet for those looking for a living. All kinds of jobs are available in Jakarta. Sometimes the work makes the areas around Jakarta also compete to earn a living in the Indonesian capital.
This condition makes people who enter Jakarta during the day crowded. They and the people of Jakarta create crowds everywhere. As a result, traffic jams are inevitable. Moreover, most of them still rely on private transportation, cars or motorcycles.
The problem of traffic jams then became the main problem faced by each Jakarta leader. They often promise to solve the traffic jam problem. Some have ideas by creating TransJakarta. There are also those who have ideas to make monorails and the like.
The problem is that the existing ideas are not yet capable of reducing Jakarta's congestion. This condition was also felt by Jokowi when he was Governor of DKI Jakarta in the 2012-2014 era. Jokowi was initially confident that he could reduce Jakarta's congestion.
Jokowi's confidence did increase when he first took office. However, reality says otherwise. The traffic jam problem did not end when Jokowi became President of Indonesia since 2014.
Jokowi began to consider Jakarta's traffic jam to be a complex thing. Alias, there are many problems that must be corrected. He asked the leaders of Jakarta to immediately build projects to provide mass transportation such as MRT, LRT, to airport trains.
If not, the losses from Jakarta's congestion for the country will increase. The loss now reaches Rp. 28 trillion per year.
"In Jakarta, from the calculations and data I received, we lost Rp. 28 trillion in one year due to congestion. From Bandung to Jakarta, we lost Rp. 7 trillion. "
"Here, the LRT will be to the airport or the train or the fast train to the airport. Everything must be calculated, calculated, so that this becomes an alternative for people to use the transportation mode that they like," said Jokowi as quoted by the Liputan6 website, March 29, 2016.
Jokowi also did not tire of reminding the losses related to Jakarta's traffic jams. He considers the latest count of losses due to Jakarta's traffic jams for Indonesia actually increased on January 8, 2019.
The loss reached Rp. 65 trillion. This condition is due to the amount of time wasted and the increase in vehicle operating costs. As a result, many companies are losing money. The loss is also felt by the state.
Jokowi also asked all leaders of Jakarta to move to succeed the current public transportation projects: LRT, MRT, to fast trains. All these projects are considered to be a brilliant option to break the chain of congestion in Jakarta.
"The Bappenas count I received, every year we lose approximately Rp. 65 trillion in Jabodetabek due to congestion. Rp. 65 trillion per year. It is not possible that things like this continue, we must dare to start, we must dare to design so that Rp. 65 trillion is really a commodity, not smoke that fills the city," said Jokowi as quoted by the Liputan6 page, January 8, 2019.