Those of us suffering through the especially horrid rush hour traffic Jakarta is experiencing these days may start to get some relief when the government starts the month-long test of the odd-even traffic rule next week on July 27. It is hoped that the new system will help alleviate the increased congestion caused by the removal of the 3-in-1 system.
However, many people are skeptical that the new system will be effective, mainly due to the ease with which car owners can supposedly acquire fake license plates to cheat the system.
But the police say they are more than ready to handle that possibility and are ready to deploy significant resources to make sure that those with fake license plates are caught and punished.
The head of public relations for the Jakarta Police, Awi Setiyono, said that 200 officers would be stationed throughout the roads in which the odd-even system will be in effect to check both the numbers of license plates and their authenticity.
Awi said that fake license plates have a number of characteristic that distinguish them from genuine ones, including the paint used to mark them and the material used to make them, which he said can be more easily dented than authentic plates.
“Officer in the field have been trained to distinguish which plates are fake and which are authentic in accordance with technical specifications,” he said as quoted by Tempo.
Awi also said that those caught using fake plates would be charged with criminal fraud and would be severely prosecuted.
Previously, Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama stated that he would like to publicly shame those found using fake license plates by posting their identities online, but it is not yet clear whether that will actually happen.
The test of the new system will run until August 20 and will be enforced on Jalan Thamrin, Jalan Sudirman, Jalan Gatot Subroto and also Jalan Rasuna Said (the last of which was not previously covered by the 3-in-1 rule) weekdays from 7am to 10pm and 4pm to 8pm. Under the rule, only cars with license plates ending in odd numbers can use those roads during rush hours on odd calendar dates, and vice-versa.
Emergency vehicles and those carrying high level government officials are also exempt from the rule.
Reader Interactions