Bogor Residents Speak Out Against Proposed "B-plate restricton"
19 September 2014 12:32 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Bogor's city administration plans to restrict B-plated cars (Jakarta cars) from entering Bogor one day in each week has sparked a lot of criticisms, not only among Jakarta residents, but also among Bogor residents - many of whom has cars registered in Jakarta.
"The mayor and his deputy cannot ban B-plated cars from entering Bogor - even if it is only for one day in a week - because there are no rules and/or law against it," said Agustian, 45, resident of North Bogor yesterday.
According to him, the ban would cause a lot of headaches for Bogor city residents, many of whom have cars that are registered in Jakarta, hence their B-prefix as opposed to the F-prefix for Bogor.
Many Bogor residents choose to register their cars in Jakarta for a number of reasons, such as expensive processing fees. "Furthermore, the process is complicated and takes a while to complete," said Agustian.
In addition, there is a prevailing belief among Bogor residents that B-plated cars sell for higher prices, compared to locally-registered F-plated cars (Bogor cars).
"I'm going to be honest - B-plated cars retain their value better compared to F-plated cars. Also, it's quicker to get the necessary papers processed in Jakarta, although it means that we have to travel out of Bogor to register," said Agustian. "We'd rather pay higher taxes than face the unnecessarily complicated process in Bogor."
Anisa, a 24-year of Bogor resident studying in Jakarta, fears that Jakarta administrators would retaliate. "What would we do if Jakarta decides to retaliate by banning F-plated cars from entering the city on weekdays?" she said.
M. SIDIK PERMANA