Jakarta (the future and past of transportation, part 2)

 

detail from above

Detail from Shiva, the destroyer and god of bad habits, The National Museum, Jakarta

Here, yet again, is another Mad-Max-Road-Warrior vehicle looking like a chopped and heavily modified Vespa… for two. This was parked when I came across it so I do not know if it runs now or how fast it goes or if it is loud. Probably does all three or did at one time. And you would definitely take your chances in that second seat.

What is striking is that I felt like I had seen this before.

And yes, indeed, I had. Compare the photo detail of the rear fender with the detail from the base of the ninth century statue of the Hindu god Shiva, the destroyer and god of bad habits, that I took at the National Museum. As much as Indonesia is purported to be a Muslim country these images are not coincidental. The Hindu gods are still alive and well in Java.

 

Jakarta (the future of transportation)

I do not know what to call it.  Maybe there is an Indonesian name for it but I have not found out what it is yet. It’s a Mad-Max-Road-Warrior kind of thing. It goes fast. It is almost invisible in the congested traffic. It is loud. So forget the Transjakarta Busway. Forget any idea about some kind of elevated train or monorail. Forget any attempt to rationalize the  awful traffic here. I present to you the future of transportation in Jakarta.

Get off to a flying start

This is a becak…

 And not a becak to be found…

“In 1970, there were 92,650 becak officially registered in Jakarta; unofficially this was estimated at 150,000. Propelled by at least two shifts per day, this would provide jobs for about 300,000 men, who could conservatively be expected to support another 900,000 people: altogether about 1,200,000 people were dependent on becak-driving.” 

-S. Abeyasekere in Jakarta: A History. 

Becak were banned in Jakarta in 1994.

That was then… this is now…

JAKARTA (Reuters Life!) - Gridlock getting you down? Join a new breed of wealthy commuters in Jakarta who are hopping onto helicopter taxis to chop hours off their journey… > read full article

Reuters  By Mita Valina Liem