Chaos in the Capital City

The Transjakarta mass transportation system is 5 years old. In mid-February this year, corridor VIII, the Lebak Bulus-Harmoni route, will be opened. Jakarta has changed a lot with the presence of these special-lane buses. But instead of improving, things are becoming ‘snafu’. Traffic congestion is getting worse, yet the Jakarta government is determined to put this project right.

February 3, 2009

A FIRMAN’S habit has changed somewhat over the past two years. This resident of Jagakarsa, South Jakarta, has stopped driving his Daihatsu Zebra car to go downtown. This 43-year-old employee of an office in Jalan Thamrin, Central Jakarta, would park his car at Ragunan where he would catch a Transjakarta bus to go to his office. “It’s cheaper, efficient and not tiring,” he said. Antonius Bardhono, 56, felt the same way following the openin

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