Recession and Traffic

3 ways recession can reduce traffic:
•Cause people who lose their jobs or get pay-cuts to sell their cars
•Encourage people to take public transport
•Encourage people to work from home to save on transport

The Reason Behind Spiritual Politics

In Indonesia, political books that touch on the realm of spirituality occupy substantial floor space in bookstores because there’s a high demand for such books. What’s the main contributor to the high demand? Well, it appears that the level of trust which the common people put on their current political leaders have deteriorated up to a point that they believe the only way to solve their problems is through the spiritual channel.

Setting a Good Example

As I drove along a traffic-heavy road today, I saw an entourage of official cars making use of the Busway lane which should not be used by any vehicles, except as the name suggests, Busway buses. If officials can't even obey rules and regulations, how can they expect the common people to obey them?

Solving Jakarta's Traffic Problem

Traffic jams are daily occurrences in Jakarta. And sadly, the actions taken by relevant authorities to solve this problem have always been nothing more than building more roads and highways. Recently, the authority announced yet another plan to build 6 more highways and its intended objective of easing congestion. Looking at the dire situation, such moves are definitely insufficient.

It is long overdue that the authorities explore various mechanisms to reduce private ownerships of vehicles. It is common to see a family of 5 owning 3-4 vehicles when it isn’t necessary for them to do so. Bidding of plate number, congestion charges and higher taxes are definitely worth implementing rather than superficial methods such as a requirement for 1 vehicle to have at least 3 passengers (which can be easily overcome by the vehicle owners).

Concurrently, the authority should look at overhauling the public transport system so as to encourage existing vehicle owners to switch to public transport. It can also entice potential vehicle buyers to dump altogether their plans.

I believe that exploring these will better solve the congestion than building even more roads and highways.

Pedestrians Walkways that are Wrongly Used in China

One peculiar thing which I noticed as I walked along the streets in China is that vehicles have a high interest in occupying any available openings or should I say gaps, regardless of whether such actions are against the law or not. It is common to see 4 lines of cars squeezing in what is supposed to be a 2-lane road. It is also common to see vehicles going against the traffic flow because the other side of the road is jammed or this particular road provides a more direct route lo your destination.

What really annoy me however is the loud horns of vehicles coming from behind me as I strolled along the pedestrians walkway. China’s pedestrians walkways are wide because they are made to ensure that large number of people can walk comfortably. Unfortunately, the wide walkways have also attracted those vehicles to make use of them. Besides the safety aspect, these vehicles are also health hazards. Imagine the sudden shock one experiences when these vehicles decide to sound their horns.

Some measures must be taken to prevent these vehicles from making use of the walkways. I understand that in certain areas, metallic barriers have been erected to prevent vehicles from entering but some persistent and innovative motorcyclists have been able to cross those barriers. One way to prevent that I believe is to re-design the barriers such that only people can pass through them. Strict rules must be put in place and at the same time enforced to ensure that violators are strongly penalized. Up to now, police officers seem to have turned a blind eye to these violations.