Jakarta's Notorious Becak May Be Making a Comeback Soon

Jakarta is getting its long-overdue Mass Rapid Transport (MRT) system soon, but it may also have to make room for its old player: becak, or pedicabs.

Becak began to disappear from Jakarta about half a century ago. Becak was the most preferred mode of transportation in the capital as early as 1936. But in the mid 60s, Jakarta officials no longer considered becak as public transportation because its drivers very often violated traffic regulations. A few years later, in 1967, then governor Ali Sadikin announced a citywide becak ban, and dumped about 40,000 becak into the waters of Jakarta's Thousand Islands.

Now there's a chance that becak will rule the streets once again. Governor Anies Baswedan has proposed a revision of the Local Regulation on Public Order that will allow the operation of becak in several parts of Jakarta. Many are quick to disagree, citing that becak will do nothing but add to the already world-famous traffic.

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Nevertheless, Anies said that the need for becak in several parts of the city is real. He told Kompas in January that becak is especially useful for women who can't carry their groceries on an ojek or public minivans, for example. He said that a special becak lane will solve the traffic problem, but this is Jakarta, a place where due to horrible traffic, motorists often drive on lanes meant for bikes and Transjakarta buses. If need be, they'll even use the sidewalks. But Anies' administration doesn't seem to be deterred.

Anies told local media that he hasn't finalized the new becak regulations, "But soon," he said on Sunday.

Becak is still popular in big cities in Indonesia like Yogyakarta, Solo, Medan and Cirebon, but those cities have relatively better traffic and city planning. One of the reasons becak may no longer be compatible with Jakarta's streets is the fact that the city's numerous construction projects have narrowed the roads and caused congestion during most hours of the day. Is another type of vehicle—and a slow one—really what we need?

Some members of the Jakarta Legislative Council (DPRD) don't think so.

“We’re going backwards,” Veri Yonnefil told local media. “The traffic is already bad without becak. The Pemprov's mindset is the same as 28 years ago.”

Many Jakarta residents are not welcoming the proposal either. Rahmat Gunawan, a university staff in West Jakarta, said the traffic stresses him out every morning, and becak will only make it worse.

"The public minivans can cause a long traffic jam when it stops and waits for passengers," he said. "There's still no solution to that problem. Now what if becak stops near markets or train stations?"

A train commuter named Arsanti told me a similar thing. She pointed out that public transportation is supposed to make passengers feel comfortable, and get them somewhere quickly. And becak just doesn't make the cut.

“I’m not anti-becak," she said. "It’s OK we use them to to attract tourists, but it's a waste if it's only good for taking people home from the market."

Here's to hoping we don't take a step forward with the MRT, and two steps back with becak.