Executive Summary

Tokyo has the highest modal share of railways and the highest gross domestic product amongst major metropolitan areas in the world. During the period of high economic growth in the 1960-70s, the Japanese government controlled the urban development in the Tokyo metropolitan area to ease the concentration of population and industry. Transit-Oriented Development was adopted as a way of urban development along railways to reduce the usage of vehicles. The knowledge and experience that Japanese companies have accumulated are useful to solve problems associated with urbanisation in developing countries today. The Infrastructure System Export Strategy by the Japanese government stipulates that Japan will promote integrated development projects with new urban development and public transportation by utilising its experience with urban development along railways. This paper looks at the case of Jakarta, which is one of the most congested and polluted cities in the world. In Jakarta there are many ongoing mixed-use projects with shopping centers, residential areas, and office buildings. These projects are usually along highways and lack the link to public transportation. The experience of Tokyo shows that expanding the railway network is not enough to solve traffic congestion in a metropolitan area such as Jakarta. Large suburban population in Jakarta indicates a potentially large demand for commute to the city by railways such as the Mass Rapid Transit and Light Rail Transit. Facilitating a modal shift from vehicles to railways will ease traffic congestion and air pollution. To enable the modal shift, however, it is necessary to redevelop new towns around suburban stations and give residents seamless access to the railway network.

Source: Unsplash