[sustran] Re: Indonesia's traffic nightmare

[Sudhir]

It looks surprising and still cannot believe it. Hope somebody would get us
the bill. we have emailed few friends.

Carlos - look at this
http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2009/06/24/people-can-sue-govt-poor-public-services.html

*If public service providers fail to perform their duty, and if because of
their negligence members of the public are injured or die as a result, they
are liable to criminal punishment*”.
amazing !!

cheers
Sudhir

2009/6/30 Carlosfelipe Pardo <carlosfpardo at gmail.com>

> Hi,
>
> Just a short comment on this issue of the sign that disabled people
> should wear: this just seems like Hawthorne's book The Scarlett Letter
> (and we could find more recent and true examples of similar
> situations...) Is there a way for an Indonesian organization to make
> this law un-enforceable because it violates human rights? I find it
> extremely discriminatory and excluding. Why don't they use a hot iron to
> put a sign on car-drivers' foreheads as well? It sounds just as
> logical... At least the press gave some space to Tyas and others to give
> their views...
>
> Best regards,
>
> Carlos.
>
> Sudhir wrote:
> > *"lawmakers voted unanimously this month to demand disabled people
> > wear signs announcing their condition so motorists won't run them down
> > as they cross the street.*"
> >
> >
> http://www.straitstimes.com/Breaking%2BNews/SE%2BAsia/Story/STIStory_396512.html
> >
> >  JAKARTA - NEW laws requiring disabled pedestrians to wear traffic
> > signs have met with frustration and derision in Indonesia, where in
> > the eyes of the law cars have taken priority over people.
> >
> > The laws will do nothing to improve road safety or ease the traffic
> > that is choking the life out of the capital city of some 12 million
> > people, and serve only to highlight official incompetence, analysts said.
> >
> > Within five years, if nothing changes, experts predict Jakarta will
> > reach total gridlock, with every main road and backstreet clogged with
> > barely moving, pollution-spewing cars.
> >
> > That's too late for the long-awaited urban rail link known as the Mass
> > Rapid Transit (MRT), which has only just entered the design stage and
> > won't be operational until 2016 at the earliest.
> >
> > 'Just like a big flood, Jakarta could be paralysed. The city's
> > mobility will die,' University of Indonesia researcher Nyoman Teguh
> > Prasidha said.
> >
> > Instead of requiring level footpaths and ramps, l/awmakers voted
> > unanimously this month to demand disabled people wear signs announcing
> > their condition so motorists won't run them down as they cross the
> street.
> > /
> > Experts say the new traffic law is sadly typical of a country which
> > for decades has allowed cars and an obsession with car ownership to
> > run rampant over basic imperatives of urban planning.
> >
> > 'It is strange when handicapped people are asked to carry extra
> > burdens and obligations,' Institute of Transportation Studies
> > (Instran) chairman Darmaningtyas said.
> >
> > 'The law is a triumph for the automotive industry. It's completely
> > useless for alleviating the traffic problem.' The number of motor
> > vehicles including motorcycles in greater Jakarta has almost tripled
> > in the past eight years to 9.52 million. Meanwhile road space has
> > grown less than one percent annually since 2004, according to the
> > Indonesian Transport Society.
> >
> > 'Traffic congestion is like cancer,' Institute for Transportation and
> > Development Policy specialist Harya Setyaka said. 'This cancer has
> > developed over 30 years as Jakarta begins to develop haphazardly
> > beyond its carrying capacity.' A 2004 study by the Japan International
> > Cooperation Agency found that traffic jams cost Jakarta some 8.3
> > trillion rupiah (822 million dollars) a year in extra fuel
> > consumption, lost productivity and health impact. -- AFP
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > Sudhir Gota
> > Transport Specialist
> > CAI-Asia Center
> > Unit 3510, 35th Floor, Robinsons-Equitable Tower,
> > ADB Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City
> > Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
> > Tel: +63-2-395-2843
> > Fax: +63-2-395-2846
> > http://www.cleanairnet.org/caiasia
> > Skype : sudhirgota
> > ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> >
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>



-- 
Sudhir Gota
Transport Specialist
CAI-Asia Center
Unit 3510, 35th Floor, Robinsons-Equitable Tower,
ADB Avenue, Ortigas Center, Pasig City
Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
Tel: +63-2-395-2843
Fax: +63-2-395-2846
http://www.cleanairnet.org/caiasia
Skype : sudhirgota
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