Car rental in Indonesia

Indonesia has an extensive road network, with petrol stations where you can buy petrol and diesel scattered everywhere, and the driver pays a fixed amount per litre of fuel:

• For diesel fuel – 4300 rupees.
• For A-95 petrol – 5550 rupees.
• For A-91 petrol – 4500 rupees.

Motorcycles and cars of different configurations are the usual means of transportation on the roads in Indonesia. Parking spaces are available in every town and village. They can be found at airports, in car parks, near markets, shopping centres and squares. The issue is also handled quite well at resorts. Areas adjacent to Indonesia's main attractions are sure to have parking spaces for visitors. The parking fee depends on how long the car is left there – hourly or per day.

Vehicles can be left only in designated areas, which are marked in blue, where you can park your car for a maximum of 1.5 hours. If the parking area is marked with green paint, you can leave the car there for a longer period. Areas marked in red are not intended for parking. If the traffic police find a violation, they have the legal right to require the driver to pay a fine for stopping the vehicle in a prohibited area.

Traffic in Indonesia is left-hand. The traffic rules are set out in law, but in practice they are often ignored, which is confirmed by the sad statistics. Every year many people are killed on the country's roads; the death rate from road accidents is considered one of the main problems. The condition of roads in Indonesia is poor. The main routes and roads near large cities and resort centres are good, but if you travel a little further, closer to the provinces, the condition of the road surface becomes very bad.

There are clearly not enough road signs prohibiting or restricting certain actions, or other types of signs. Road markings are not much better. The same road may be one-way in the morning and become two-way in the afternoon. The traffic authorities may not even bother to indicate the exact time when the traffic pattern changes. On top of that, domestic animals and wild representatives of the local fauna can freely wander onto the road.

• The traffic police readily fine careless drivers who have failed to adapt to the situation. The amounts to be paid can be quite high. Sometimes motorists have to pay up to several tens of dollars in penalties.
• In Jakarta, for example, your car can be turned around if it is carrying fewer than 2 passengers. According to the authorities, preventing such vehicles from entering certain areas is an effective way to deal with environmental pollution and traffic jams in the city centre. To solve the problem, the driver can pay about $1 to a "hitch-hiker", a person who, for a fee, will agree to act temporarily as a passenger.
• If the driver of the vehicle decides to go on the road without any documents, this pleasure will result in a fine of over 2 million rupees, or $200-250.

Indonesia is a country where some road sections are tolled. Driving on such routes is inexpensive; for example, within Jakarta it costs from $0.5 to $1. To drive legally, the driver will need an international-format driving licence. If not, the inspector will issue a mandatory fine, which can reach $230-250.