Private Contribution in Building Jakarta's Pedestrians

According to The New York Times, Indonesia has been named the laziest country to walk in based on Stanford University's research. According to the study, the reason why people are lazy to walk is closely related to the poor sidewalks. This can be proven in other cities with more decent sidewalk facilities such as New York and San Francisco, the results show that citizens are more diligent in walking than using motorized vehicles.

The research is actually very relevant if you look at Jakarta today. Sidewalks along Sudirman Street, for example, are still unfriendly and need to be widened. Not to mention the misuse of pedestrian paths by motorists or street vendors, and of course the limited connectivity between buildings.

This condition clearly impacts and exacerbates the level of congestion in the commercial area. Hundreds or even thousands of workers who could have passed by foot for destinations with short distances, finally chose to use motorized vehicles. This can be seen during peak hours in Sudirman, Thamrin, and others.

The presence of the MRT, which is expected to be a solution to congestion, on the other hand brings the impact of passenger flow density that must be anticipated. Assuming 60% of passengers work in the CBD area, it is estimated that there will be 900 people going back and forth between stations every 5-10 minutes. Lebak Bulus MRT Station, HI Roundabout, as well as 11 other stations, are expected to carry 160,000 to 190,000 passengers every day. Without proper pedestrian pathways, the flood of passengers will become a source of congestion in the future.

While the government is still working on a plan to address this challenge, building managers in the Sudirman commercial district are one step ahead in their contribution to Jakarta. The developers took the initiative to build pedestrian access connected to several buildings by initiating the Platinum Triangle project, which covers Jl Sudirman, Jl KH Mas Mansyur and Jl Penjaringan 1 (see picture).

The project, which is a private contribution, is also planned to be connected to Bendungan Hilir, Setiabudi, and Dukuh Atas MRT stations. Including TransJakarta bus stops Dukuh Atas 1 and 2, Setiabudi, and the Airport Train station.

As evidence of the commitment of the private sector, the developers not only invited experts to design but were also willing to give up their land for pedestrian paths in the area.

This contribution is expected to help the government provide pedestrian and connectivity for the Dukuh Atas TOD (Transit Oriented Development) area, which is included in the Jakarta Spatial Planning program. Currently, there are several transportation service providers that each have plans regarding TOD, ranging from LRT, MRT, TransJakarta, Rail Link, and KAI. However, the plans still stand individually and have not been integrated with each other.

Moreover, this project is designed by professionals who prioritize environmental harmony. So, it will not displace residents' land, instead it has the potential to improve welfare with land for selling comfortably. Also, there will be open access to interaction for the entire community. Thus, the surrounding community also benefits.

The design of this area has already been presented to the 2017 Governor-elect of DKI Jakarta, Anies Baswedan. However, until now we are still waiting for the development plan in the area from the new DKI Jakarta Government to be able to realize this project.

The Platinum Triangle is a pilot project for the development of public facilities from developers who want to contribute to building a better Jakarta. This project is also integrated with the rejuvenation of Karet Village around the Platinum Triangle area. If the project is successful, it is not impossible that similar contributions will emerge and make it easier for the government to build other public facilities.

If the government is slow in responding to this idea, it will be difficult for the private sector to contribute to Jakarta and execute this project. In fact, there is an urgency along with the MRT mega project which is scheduled to operate in early 2019. Discussions with an open mind and based on mutual interests must be carried out so that the pedestrian path can be used by the community immediately.