Hello from Jakarta, Indonesia

[Daox]

Welcome to the site!

[arsu]

Gaaah. I thought Manila was bad. My commute is also 15km each way, but it "only" typically takes me an hour.

Without traffic, I can get it in 20 minutes flat. 40 minutes on good days, an hour and a half on bad days.

hello Alpha.. this is city centre... every day on rush hours .. hehe

[arsu]

FYI, we also have Indonesian Mirage Forum.. pls have a check what we do

http://www.kaskus.co.id/post/50efd08c7d1243aa1c000014

[Alpha_One]

hello Alpha.. this is city centre... every day on rush hours .. hehe

This is Manila's rush hour:



But we have an MRT you say! Well that one looks like this on the inside:



We Southeast Asian big city dwellers must be nuts.

[MetroMPG]

Wow! Photos like those make me glad to live in a small city with little traffic to speak of.

I'm tempted to ask: wouldn't it be faster to ride a bicycle? But then I have no idea if that's even practical in Jakarta or Manila.

[Alpha_One]

It would indeed be faster to ride a bicycle! It's very hot and humid in these parts of the world though, so it isn't practical unless your workplace has a shower. The other problem are the bicycle thieves. That's why for those who can afford it, they buy cars they can so they can at least sit in an airconditioned box for the hellish commute. Then again, a lot of people do use motorbikes to beat the traffic and the fuel prices.

The problem around these parts of the world is that the rural areas tend to be very undeveloped and are infested with rebels and other sorts of bandits. So everyone goes to the urban areas - here in the Philippines, that will be Manila and Cebu. You'd make more money as a street vendor, and the risk of getting mugged pales in comparison with the risk of communist and radical Islamist rebels torching your small rural town. The cities are also poorly planned and infrastructure investment proceeds at a snail's pace.

The situation has improved somewhat in the past few years, but the cities have gotten significantly wealthier, so everyone still flocks to Manila!

Hence our infamous rush hours.

[arsu]

Wow! Photos like those make me glad to live in a small city with little traffic to speak of.

I'm tempted to ask: wouldn't it be faster to ride a bicycle? But then I have no idea if that's even practical in Jakarta or Manila.

yea jakarta has. Some white collar workers started a campaign called 'Bike to Work' (B2W). it had quite many supporters until some time, due to lack of bicycle lanes and more dangerous traffic. We had to compete with motorbikes that are like "flies" literally. Those are really nuts bikers and 'monkeys' I would say. Good that the new governor promotes for greener jakarta, we have car free days 2x a month, and more bike lanes are being built..

[MetroMPG]

That sounds good, arsu.

I actually bike for most of my in-town trips, year round. (But remember, it's a small city (nothing is more than about 8 km / 5 mi. away). I use the car when I'm going somewhere on the highway.

I wonder if it's easier biking in the Canadian winter, or southeast Asian heat & humidity.

[arsu]

That sounds good, arsu.

I actually bike for most of my in-town trips, year round. (But remember, it's a small city (nothing is more than about 8 km / 5 mi. away). I use the car when I'm going somewhere on the highway.

I wonder if it's easier biking in the Canadian winter, or southeast Asian heat & humidity.

i have some friends who moved and live in US. I envy seeing them enjoying the nature, biking, kayaking. outdoor is actually my 'thing' . I think US and canada are really beautiful countries. I 've never been to US and canada, hope someday to cruise with a 2 seater with open top, cool breeze & mountain view in the surroundings

[MetroMPG]

Well, I would highly recommend doing that when you get the chance.

I just spent 2 months on the Canadian west coast (in Vancouver), and I won't lie: it really is a majestic place. I love visiting there. Too bad it's so far away (4,600 km). It's a little closer for me than for you though (~13,000 km)!