According to Pranoto, the morning shift supervisor at the Semanggi toll gate, the first day of the new toll rates was marked by a significant drop in traffic.
"I haven't counted the exact number, but I think it's about 20 percent," he said.
He predicted that the number of toll road users would return to normal in between two weeks and a month.
Semanggi toll gate attendant Uli Marlina said some motorists had complained to her about the hike.
"They were still trying to be polite, though," she said.
The Semanggi toll road is the city's most crowded, especially during peak hours, connecting together the city's business "golden triangle" of Jl. Sudirman in Central Jakarta, Jl. Gatot Subroto and Jl. HR Rasuna Said in South Jakarta.
Bekasi resident Rachmat Sudrajat said he could not believe toll operator PT Jasa Marga had raised the turnpike tariff without improving services.
"Now I have to spend Rp 21,000 (US$2.23) for toll roads, while before the hikes I only spent Rp 16,000 a day," said Rachmat, who is a heavy user of the expressways.
Rachmat said he and his wife regularly took the Cawang-Semanggi turnpike. On a usual day, after dropping his wife at a bank near Jl. Sudirman in Central Jakarta, Rachmat then enters the Senayan toll gate and exits at Ampera in South Jakarta on his way to the office.
The toll hike, which averages at 20 percent, has placed an extra burden on motorists still upset with Jasa Marga's new policy on the Jakarta Outer Ring Road last week that requires vehicle users to pay the same charge of Rp 6,000 regardless the distance they travel.
Another turnpikes user, Midya N. Santi, questioned the toll hike decisions.
"Doesn't the operator already have enough revenue from all the motorists who have been using turnpikes all this time?" she asked.
"The operator didn't even improve any facilities the last time it raised the toll," said Midya, who regularly takes the turnpike from East Jakarta's Cawang to Semanggi.
"It doesn't make sense that the operator always raises the toll every two years," said Midya, whose office is on Jl. Lombok in Menteng, Central Jakarta.
The government increased the toll charge by around 20 percent two years ago.
PT Jasa Marga corporate secretary Okke Marlina said the raise was in line with a government regulation.
"We will use the revenue to cover our operational costs and improve tollway facilities," she said.
A 2004 law and a 2005 government regulation allow the toll to be changed every two years.
Bintaro resident Tjandra Tedja is currently collecting signatures from residents opposed to the toll rise in order to file a class action lawsuit against the operator and the government.
He also plans to file a judicial review of the law and regulation with the Constitutional Court. (08)
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