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View all search resultsThe iconic wheels Jakarta left behind
Nearly a decade after a Jakarta governor suggested the return of becak, which has had a complicated relationship with the capital, electric versions are making a comeback elsewhere.
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On Oct. 6, 1987, during a raid on Jl. Wolter Monginsidi in South Jakarta, officers seized and loaded pedicabs onto trucks as traffic whizzed by, seemingly oblivious to their removal. (The Jakarta Post Archive/Kosasih Derajat)
O
nce a familiar sight on Jakarta’s streets, becak (pedicab) has largely disappeared from the urban transportation landscape. Yet nearly a century after its arrival in the capital, the human-powered vehicle is getting a new lease on life elsewhere in the country, this time with an electric motor.
Becak began operating in Jakarta in 1936 and quickly became a major mode of public transport. By 1970, around 150,000 pedicabs were estimated to be operating in the capital, along with around 300,000 drivers working in two shifts, according to historical records cited by Antara.
This once ubiquitous three-wheelers were increasingly blamed for the city’s congestion and criticized as outdated for their reliance on human power. In 1970, governor Ali Sadikin banned the production of new becak and their entry to Jakarta.
The following year, the city restricted them from major roads, then a 1972 regulation classified becak alongside oplet, a type of public minivan, as forms of transport unsuitable for the capital.
The crackdown continued under successive administrations. The City Council passed a total ban in 1988 and in April 1990, the Jakarta administration moved to remove becak altogether. On Oct. 6, 1987, during a raid on Jl. Wolter Monginsidi in South Jakarta, officers seized and loaded pedicabs onto trucks as traffic whizzed by, seemingly oblivious to their removal.
During the 1997-1998 Asian financial crisis, governor Sutiyoso briefly relaxed the ban to help people affected by the economic downturn. Becak quickly returned to the city streets, but the reprieve lasted less than a week.
The issue resurfaced two decades later under governor Anies Baswedan, who proposed the revival of becak in 2018 as localized neighborhood transport, with special routes keeping them off major roads.
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