Singapore’s Orchard Road
With the exception of a couple of car-free hours on Sunday morning, Jakarta has got to be one of the most pedestrian unfriendly cities in the world. Most of the capital’s sidewalks are either in terrible condition, taken over by food stalls or used for motorcycle parking (or some combination thereof).
But Governor Basuki “Ahok” Purnama Tjahaja has a vision of Jakarta where at least one street has wide luxurious sidewalks for pedestrians to parade up and down on. Specifically, the main traffic artery that is Sudirman-Thamrin.
Ahok mentioned his plans while discussing the capital’s infrastructure plans at the opening of the Jak-Japan Matsuri festival in Plaza Senayan yesterday. The governor said that once construction on the road’s MRT (mass rapid transit system) line was complete, he would eliminate the slow lane along Sudirman and Thamrin as well as remove the separator in the middle of the road.
“Then I will expand the sidewalks and green space on both sides of the road,” Ahok said, as quoted by Tempo.
Ahok said his plan was inspired by Singapore’s Orchard Road and the streets of Manhattan in New York.
“Tourists there are spoiled with views of tall buildings decorated with giant LED screens,” he said, adding that he would not be opposed to attaching such advertising to skyscrapers in Jakarta as long as they were heavily taxed by the government.
Jakarta definitely needs more and better sidewalks, but is turning Sudirman-Thamrin into Orchard Road a good idea? Let us know what you think.
