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For anyone living in Jakarta, the traffic situation is an daily waking nightmare. On any given day Jakartans are forced to spend hours on the road, either in private vehicles or on public buses, breathing noxious fumes and wasting time.

Of course, this problem has been brewing for years, and each year more cars are added to already congested roads. Every resident knows that if nothing is done the capital will be totally gridlocked in just a few years.

Thankfully, the government seems now to be moving to find ways to alleviate some of the congestion. Vice President Boediono on Monday called for a comprehensive solution to the worsening traffic conditions as he formally opened a new section of the Jakarta Outer Ring Road.

The 9.7-kilometer Kebon Jeruk-Penjaringan section of the ring road was one of six new infrastructure projects Boediono inaugurated, at a total cost of Rp. 2.3 trillion. But, as the vice president rightly notes, physical infrastructure is only one component of the overall solution.

Public transportation, for example, must also be dramatically improved if we are to reduce congestion, especially in Central Jakarta, where simply getting around has become a frustrating challenge and inconvenience. Urgently needed is a mass rapid transport system that can carry a large number of commuters into and around the city. It is a real embarrassment that Jakarta remains the only major capital in the Asean bloc that does not have a MRT system, despite two decades of planning.

The busway, despite early reservations, has proved to be a success, but it needs to be better planned. The buses need to be improved so middle-class commuters will not hesitate to use public transport rather than driving their cars.

The vice president was also on the mark when he said that improvements in public transportation alone were insufficient. The city administration must regulate the use of private cars in a rational and practical manner. No matter how many kilometers of new toll roads we build, traffic congestion will remain a problem if vehicle numbers are allowed to increase exponentially.

Other cities have introduced various kinds of vehicle management systems and we can and must learn from these examples.

The growing traffic congestion exerts huge economic, social and health costs on the country and the residents of Jakarta. It affects productivity, hampers the movement of goods and causes health problems. Children, especially, suffer from lung and other respiratory problems as a result of the pollution caused by vehicle emissions.

Better infrastructure and management of traffic flow will not only boost economic growth but also improve people’s welfare.

This is an urgent problem that needs an urgent solution. The government is making progress but clearly more needs to be done faster.