How Can Jakarta Do More With Its Low Emission Zones?
Towards the long overdue shift from symbolism to substance
The air hangs motionless over Jakarta, trapping vehicle exhaust and industrial emissions beneath an unforgiving sun. Day after day, the smog thickens into a toxic shroud that blankets Indonesia’s capital. Jakarta has recently been named the world’s most polluted city, with PM2.5 levels about 8.6 times higher than what the World Health Organisation considers safe. This leads to more than 10,000 premature deaths every year—a toll that grows as tens of thousands continue to move to the mega city in search of opportunity.
Since the early 2000s, the city government has tried multiple pollution reduction measures. One significant intervention came in February 2021 with the launch of the Low Emission Zone (LEZ), directly targeting emissions from cars and motorbikes that generate the majority of Jakarta’s air pollution. Vehicle emissions are Jakarta’s leading pollution culprit, accounting for 31-44% of PM2.5 pollution in the city. The LEZ policy restricts high-emission vehicles from entering designated areas, particularly heritage sites and environmentally sensitive zones. So far, two pilot areas have been established - Kota Tua, Jakarta’s historic district, and Tebet Eco Park, a major green space in the city.
But are these zones actually working?
A Green Makeover for Jakarta’s Old Town
The LEZ in Kota Tua, or Jakarta’s Old Town, has been in place since 2022, covering a tiny area of just 0.14 km². It was designed to pedestrianize five road segments surrounding Taman Fatahilah, restricting entry of TransJakarta buses and a limited number of local vehicles owned by residents and business operators.
The LEZ in Kota Tua was, in fact, not originally conceived as an air pollution measure. Its origins trace back to Governor Regulation No. 36 of 2014, issued under then-Governor Joko Widodo, which sought to preserve the historical and cultural heritage of Kota Tua. The regulation aimed to limit vehicle access, reduce congestion, and protect centuries-old colonial structures from damage wrought by the pollution, vibration, and structural stress from heavy vehicle movement.
When the “Low Emission Zone” label was introduced in 2022, it represented less of a true embracing of sustainability, and more a rebranding of this earlier traffic management and conservation policy, aligned to the global language of sustainability. Yet this shift in framing - from heritage preservation to emissions reduction - may also explain why confusion persists over what the LEZ in Kota Tua is truly meant to achieve.
Enforcement of the LEZ has been far from effective. The sticker system introduced to regulate authorized vehicles lasted only a few months, and private cars still enter the zone regularly. Since the zone is so small, it has not made much of a dent in the city’s overall air pollution. There is also a deeper problem: the air quality issues threatening Kota Tua does not just come from inside its narrow streets. They stem largely from traffic congestion and industrial emissions across the wider metropolitan area. Limiting vehicles in a small heritage enclave may help preserve building facades, but it does little to address the greater pollution problem.
There is also a human cost to the LEZ. When the LEZ was implemented, street vendors and informal businesses that had long operated around Fatahillah Square, at the heart of Kota Tua, were relocated to Kota Intan, on the northern fringe of the old town. These relocated vendors now struggle to attract customers, as foot traffic rarely extends that far. What was intended as an urban beautification effort has instead displaced livelihoods, revealing how well-intentioned environmental or heritage initiatives can impose hardship on vulnerable workers while leaving the city’s underlying environmental challenges unresolved.
Tebet Eco Park: A Weekend-Only LEZ
The LEZ in Tebet Eco Park tells a slightly different story. The park sits right in the middle of a busy residential area in South Jakarta and has quickly become a weekend favorite for people to jog, relax, and bring family. According to Jakarta’s Detailed Spatial Plan, the park is designated as a green belt and blue open space zone to help mitigate flood risks.
Unlike in Kota Tua, the LEZ restrictions at Tebet Eco Park apply only on weekends and public holidays, from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., focusing on limiting car access around the park and encouraging visitors to walk. While this improves the park’s atmosphere and reinforces its role as a public space, the environmental impact remains limited. The weekend-only restriction operates more as a behavioral nudge than a structural intervention. Enforcement is largely voluntary, relying on social norms and signage rather than active monitoring or penalties.
Similar to the Kota Tua LEZ, the Tebet Eco Park LEZ suffers from the same fundamental weaknesses. The regulated area is too small. Enforcement is weak. More critically, its plans for restructuring access and phasing out high-emission vehicles lack clarity and binding timelines. Restricting vehicle access for only a few hours each week cannot offset the pollution generated daily by the dense arterial roads that surround the area.
To truly tackle Jakarta’s ongoing air pollution problem, the city needs to think bigger and act more systematically when it comes to LEZs. Lessons from other global cities show that LEZs achieve real impact only backed by strong regulatory frameworks that make cleaner mobility both possible and practical.
Beijing’s Clean Air Playbook: Starting with the Biggest Polluters First
A combination of rapid economic growth, population increase, and dramatic rise in motor vehicle use had made Beijing one of the most polluted cities in the world. Yet, Beijing did not start with tokenistic gestures in addressing air pollution. They went after the biggest polluters first.
Its LEZ policy, introduced in 2017, first targeted heavy-duty freight vehicles that failed to meet the National IV emission standard (equivalent to Euro IV). Despite making up less than 10% of the vehicle fleet, these trucks were responsible for over 50% of vehicle-related emissions in the city.
Only later, in 2019, did Beijing expand the LEZ citywide and reinforce it with stricter standards. By then, Beijing had already achieved a considerable 22% drop in heavy-duty truck PM2.5 emissions within the LEZ.
From Penalties to Incentives: Beijing’s Comprehensive LEZ Strategy
Enforcement in Beijing is rigorous, combining manual inspections, automated license plate recognition, and on-the-spot fines. Since March 2024, the city has implemented weekday driving limits based on license plate numbers, restricting vehicles with certain digits from entering the LEZ on specific days. Non-compliant vehicles are immediately required to exit the zone. These measures are backed by real-time monitoring technologies, including GPS tracking and electronic geofencing. Meanwhile, electric vehicles, are exempt from these restrictions.
But the LEZ is only one part of a broader strategy. Beijing reinforces it with incentives to accelerate fleet turnover and promote cleaner vehicles. Owners of older commercial trucks meeting China IV emission standards can receive subsidies ranging from ¥10,000 to ¥140,000 (USD $1,400 to $19, 656) for early scrappage and replacement with new energy trucks that run on alternatives to diesel-powered engines.
Progress has been swift. Between 2013 and 2023, Beijing cut its PM2.5 pollution by more than 64%. That’s a massive step forward in just a decade.
Developing A LEZ Framework for Jakarta
Jakarta cannot simply replicate Beijing’s model, but it can draw valuable lessons from the principles that make it work.
First, target the biggest polluters at a meaningful scale. Jakarta has already established vehicle emission standards as part of its Low Emission Zone (LEZ) framework and broader air-quality regulations. Under MoEF Decree P.20, all vehicle types must comply with Euro IV emission standards. Yet, as of August 2021, only 500,000 of the city’s two million vehicles had undergone testing. Jakarta must close this compliance gap by scaling up testing infrastructure and mandating regular inspections. Phased restrictions on older, high-emission vehicles, especially pre-Euro 2 gasoline cars and older diesel trucks, should also be introduced with clear deadlines for completion.
Beyond small pilot areas like Kota Tua, Jakarta should expand LEZ coverage to include major traffic corridors and industrial transport routes. Priority should be given to high-impact corridors where improvements would be most visible and measurable, such as the Sudirman–Thamrin–Kuningan Axis, one of the city’s busiest arteries.
Second, enforce with real consequences and provide viable alternatives. Jakarta’s earlier sticker system failed largely because there were no penalties. In contrast, Beijing relies on automated license plate recognition, on-the-spot fines, and mandatory exits for non-compliant vehicles. Jakarta needs similar technological tools and the political will to ensure consistent enforcement. Without real consequences, an LEZ remains only a suggestion. Yet penalties alone will not succeed without alternatives that make compliance possible and equitable.
Vehicle restrictions must go hand in hand with mobility options. This means accelerating TransJakarta’s expansion, improving first- and last-mile connectivity, and ensuring that public transport is reliable, affordable, and accessible. Support mechanisms - such as subsidies for high-polluting fleet operators to transition to cleaner vehicles - should make compliance economically feasible, not just legally obligatory.
Third, anchor the policy in law and measure progress transparently. One of Jakarta’s biggest obstacles is policy continuity. With governors changing every five years, policies risk being abandoned midway. LEZ requirements must therefore be embedded in provincial bylaws (Peraturan Daerah) that outlast political cycles, integrated into the Jakarta Spatial Plan (RTRW) and Regional Development Plan (RPJMD), and backed by clear institutional mandates outlining which agency enforces, monitors, and evaluates progress.
Beijing’s success - a 64% reduction in PM2.5 levels within a decade - came from measuring progress and adjusting policies. Jakarta can impose its LEZs with the same rigor by establishing baseline air-quality readings, setting annual reduction targets, and publishing transparent data comparing PM2.5 levels inside and outside LEZs. Only through measurable accountability mechanisms can LEZs become a real part of Jakarta’s clean-air equation rather than a symbolic gesture.
Looking ahead, Jakarta doesn’t need more pilot projects or beautification efforts guised as environmental reform. It needs one serious, scaled, and enforceable LEZ policy - one that actually clears the air, for good.
NAILA HAFIZHAH is a strategic planning and economics consultant based in Jakarta with a keen interest in spatial computation and sustainable transportation.
FERDIAN WIBOWO is an urban planner specializing in smart city and urban development based in Madiun City, Java, Indonesia. He is committed to transforming his hometown, Madiun, into a model smart city for Indonesia.