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A little over a month after the capital’s first-ever bicycle lane was opened, Jakarta cyclists are now asking the city administration to create more — this time on roads they actually use.

“We appreciate the government’s effort to finish the bicycle lane from Ayodya Park to Blok M but we hope the government can immediately start the project for the agreed master plan,” said Toto Sugito, founder of the Bike2Work Community, the country’s largest commuter cycling group.

He was referring to the 1.4-kilometer bike lane inaugurated at the end of May and running from Ayodya Park in South Jakarta down Jalan Mahakam to Melawai on Jalan Iskandarsyah.

“Honestly, the route [from Ayodya to Blok M] is not a common route for bicyclists in Jakarta, and ever since it was opened in May, I’ve only seen a few people using the lane,” Toto said.

With the absence of cyclists, the empty lane has attracted parked vehicles. Toto said he was afraid that in the long run the Ayodya bike lane would hurt the cause of cyclists, because other road users would see it as a waste of space.

“In the end, it will ruin our reputation and we could be accused of dominating a public space that we didn’t use anyway, even though we were not involved in the plan at all,” he said.

Toto said he was in fact worried when the city administration first announced the plan to build the Ayodya bike lane, since the route was not mentioned in the master plan for bike lanes that was approved by Jakarta’s governor, Fauzi Bowo.

The master plan envisions a route running 10 kilometers, from Lebak Bulus in South Jakarta and running through Pondok Indah, Pakubuwono, Moestopo University and Jalan Sudirman.

Toto assured that this particular route would be used by many cyclists, and now it was just up to the government to do the work. When the work will start, he added, is uncertain since they were still waiting for word from the administration.

“We also want the government to be strict and persuade the management of buildings and offices to provide parking space for cyclists,” he said.

Toto said he also hoped bicycle lanes could be built along riverbanks, including along the East Flood Canal.

That is an idea that has the support of the mayor of South Jakarta, Syahrul Effendi, who previously proposed bike lanes along the flood canal.

Like the dedicated TransJakarta busway lanes, the bike lanes would be clearly marked out with road signs and would also be painted green to let motorists know not to drive in them.

“The proposal to build the bike lane has been included in the city’s spatial plan for 2010 to 2030,” Toto said.

If the project is ever finished, he said, it could be an icon for a green Jakarta.

“If the government finishes it as promised we will have a bike lane that can also function as a park for recreation,” he said. “It’s going to be very nice.”