Indonesia Considers Limiting Vehicle Growth

The Indonesian government is considering passing a regulation to limit the growth of vehicles as part of a campaign to save energy and reduce fuel oil subsidies, the Elshinta Radio quoted a transport official as saying Monday.

The efforts to limit the number of vehicles had been included in a bill on traffic and land transportation to be discussed in August 2008, the Transportation Ministry's director general of land transportation, Iskandar Abu Bakar, said.

Iskandar said the bill aims to limit vehicle use and vehicle ownership. The first step is to limit vehicle use.

Methods such as limiting parking space and increasing parking fees would decrease the mobility of private vehicles. But, more importantly, the government needs to provide better public transportation, he added.

The vehicle growth in Indonesia has reached 46 percent a year, and the state subsidized 5,000 rupiah (about 54 U.S. cents) for each liter of fuel oil.

Source: CRIEnglish