Car rally tours architectural landmarks for greener Jakarta

Eny Wulandari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 02/08/2010 10:04 AM

Ride on: Members of Mercedes-Benz Club Indonesia convoy in "Mercedes-Benz Rally Batavia: Tribute to Indonesia" on Jl. Medan Merdeka Selatan in Jakarta on Sunday. The convoy also planted 3,000 trees along Jl. Sedyatmo and the East and West Flood Canals. JP/Wendra Ajistyatama

More than 150 vintage car connoisseurs joined the Rally Batavia II on Sunday to visit some the city’s historical spots and to witness the planting of 3,000 trees as part of efforts to make Jakarta greener.

Participants drove vintage and classic Mercedes-Benz models from 1953 to 2009 during the event, that also marked the 40th anniversary of the German carmaker’s presence in Indonesia.

“The rally was fun. We got to see places that we did not know before,” Yuniadi H. Hartono, one of the participants, said.

He added the event had also given him and other participants a chance to share with underprivileged children at the Darussa’adah Islamic Foundation by donating school equipment.

The rally began at City Hall and ended at Pintu Satu, Senayan.

During the five-hour rally, participants passed through old sites, such as the Schouburg building (now the Jakarta Arts Playhouse), Gedong Joang 45 and the National Gallery in Central Jakarta.

Apart from passing by the architectural landmarks, participants also witnessed the planting of a trembesi (rain tree) by Jakarta Governor Fauzi Bowo along Jl. Sultan Agung, South Jakarta.

Around 300 rain trees with heights of between 5 to 6 meters were planted. The same number of trees were planted along the Sedyatmo toll road while more than 2,000 trees were planted in the East Flood Canal area.

The president and CEO of Mercedes-Benz Indonesia, Rudi Borgenheimer, said the number of trees planted was the symbol of what they had achieved last year.

In 2009, the company sold 2,884 units.

“We want to continue [doing this activity] next year as part of our corporate social responsibility [CSR] program,” Borgenheimer said.

The governor said after the planting that the city parks and cemeteries agency would look after the trees.

“Some auto firms like Honda and Toyota Astra have given their support for the planting activity. I hope there will be more corporations doing the same,” Fauzi said.

South Jakarta Mayor Sahrul Effendi said that a similar planting activity would be conducted by other companies in Tebet this month.

“Apart from companies, we expect residents to plant trees around their neighborhoods,” Sahrul said.

The city administration is encouraging the public and companies to plant trees to add green space and minimize the risks of possible floods.

In 1965, more than 35 percent of Jakarta was made up of green areas, but this has been shrinking ever since. Currently, green areas in Jakarta account for only 9.3 percent of the city’s 661,000 square meters of land, far less than the target of 30 percent set by the 2007 Spatial Planning Law.