The Land of the Motor Bike

Having now spent a month in Jakarta, I can say with some authority that the single most striking aspect of life in Indonesia is the dominance of the motor bike as a mode of transportation. That's Motor bike, not motorcycle. Motorbikes swarm like gnats through the streets of Jakarta, filling every available open space between cars. This simultaneously aggravates the already gridlocked traffic, while providing the rider with the best means of overcoming it. Some specifications:
Most popular model: Honda Supra Fit
Size: 110-125 cc
Seating Capacity: Seats a family of four comfortably. Children as young as two perched atop the driver's lap and clutching the handlebars for dear life are not an uncommon sight.

Road restrictions: You must be joking. I have seen them on freeways, trying to maintain 40 mph as cars whiz past at twice that. Sidewalks, when not filled with street peddlers, make a great way to travel against the flow of Satuh Arah (one way) traffic.

Cargo capacity: varies considerably based on the ingenuity of the rider. I have seen bikes with with what must be at least 600 lb. of material lashed saddlebag-style across the rear of the bike.








Fuel: regular gasoline (leaded). Pertamina, the state controlled oil monopoly, has fairly modern, though dirty and care-worn, stations located throughout the city. Or, if you are a desperate or trusting soul, you can buy your bensin from a street peddler in unmarked plastic one-liter bottles.