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View all search resultsExtending Jakarta’s CFD may raise awareness but not dent pollution
While the city administration has cited emissions reduction as a potential benefit of extending CFD to Saturdays, Walhi says it would do little to help improve air quality, though it could provide a foundational base for a wide-ranging public awareness campaign.
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A group of people take advantage of Car Free Day on Dec. 4, 2022, exercising along a Jakarta thoroughfare closed to motor vehicles between 6 a.m. and 11 a.m. (AFP/BAY ISMOYO)
T
he Jakarta administration is considering adding Saturday to its weekly Car Free Day (CFD) program, a move analysts say could raise public awareness about air pollution and carbon emissions but would do little to address the city’s perennial pollution.
The proposal is to close the Sudirman-Thamrin and Rasuna Said thoroughfares to motor vehicles for an extra 3.5 hours each week.
The idea was first floated earlier this month by Environment Minister Jumhur Hidayat, who said expanding CFD to two days might help curb pollution by reducing road traffic. It gained further support last week when M. Taufik Zoelkifli, who chairs the City Council’s Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) faction, suggested a three-month trial period before the policy was enacted.
Deputy Jakarta Governor Rano Karno has responded by saying the city administration was seriously considering the proposed addition and trial.
“These are interesting suggestions, actually, as it will definitely lower [carbon] emissions,” Rano said on Wednesday.
Read also: Borderless pollution chokes Greater Jakarta as policy gaps persist
He noted that further assessment would be needed before any trial could take place, however, particularly because some offices and businesses were open on Saturday. Closing some of the capital’s major roads would therefore require careful traffic management and consideration of workers’ mobility, he added.
