Jakarta (ANTARA) - The provincial government of Jakarta is providing free emissions testing for two-wheeled and four-wheeled vehicles as part of efforts to reduce air pollution in the capital.

"We invite the community to be aware to do emissions testing and shift to using public transport," Head of the Jakarta Environment Office Asep Kuswanto said here on Friday.

The Jakarta Environment Office and the Jakarta Transportation Office's Parking Management Unit will carry out free emissions testing at Park and Ride Lebak Bulus, South Jakarta, on Friday until 5 p.m. local time.

The Jakarta government expressed the hope that people would get the condition of their vehicles checked as well as contribute to reducing air pollution.

Related news: Jakarta fights air pollution by cooperating with S Tangerang, Bekasi

There are plans to make emissions the basis for imposing motor vehicle tax rates in 2023.

The Jakarta government's efforts to support emissions testing have included providing 317 emissions testing locations for cars and 92 emissions testing locations for motorcycles.

In addition, the government has also provided training to 1,085 technicians and carried out 101 free emissions tests.

According to data from the Jakarta Environment Office, as of Friday, 717,820 cars and 64,578 motorcycles have undergone emissions testing in Jakarta.

Emissions testing implementation has been mandated by Jakarta Governor’s Regulation Number 66 of 2022 regarding motor vehicle exhaust emissions tests.

Article 17 of the regulation states that all motor vehicle owners who do not perform a vehicle exhaust emissions test and/or do not meet the requirements for passing the exhaust emissions test will be subject to a disincentive in the form of the highest parking cost.

Motor vehicles are one of the contributors to mobile source air pollution that leads to the accumulation of harmful pollutants.

According to the Jakarta Environment Office, the measurement results from five Air Quality Measurement Stations (SPKUs) show that PM2.5 and PM10 pollutants are far above the national annual standard.

Jakarta's air quality index from has remained low compared to other regions year to year at 53.50–78.78.

The Jakarta provincial government is aiming to reduce the levels of harmful PM2.5 pollutants by 41 percent by 2030.

Related news: Jakarta targets 41-percent reduction in PM2.5 concentrations by 2030







Translator: Dewa Ketut, Raka Adji
Editor: Rahmad Nasution
Copyright © ANTARA 2022