Thursday, June 24, 2010

Bali regional revenue increases by 7 percent




Ni Komang Erviani, The Jakarta Post, Denpasar | Fri, 06/25/2010 11:38 AM | Bali
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Increasing tax revenues from vehicle owners has greatly boosted Bali's regional revenue from Rp 1.081 trillion in 2008 to Rp 1.16 trillion in 2009, a 7 percent increase, an official said.

Bali Governor Made Mangku Pastika told reporters after presenting the fiscal year 2009 provincial state budget report that tax revenue from vehicles reached Rp 1.02 trillion.

"Easy access to bank loans and credit schemes have encouraged people to buy more cars and motorcycles," Pastika said.

Car and motorcycles producers have offered soft-loans and credit schemes allowing potential buyers to pay down only Rp 250,000 on a Rp 13 million motorcycle.

Car buyers also have the luxury of low-interest credit, and need only pay down Rp 20 million for a sedan or MPV.

The Bali Transportation Agency said the number of vehicles in Bali had reached 2 million, 80 percent of which were motorcycles. The number of vehicles on the island's is predicted to grow by between 10 percent and 11 percent per year.

Pastika added that the rapid growth in vehicle ownership might be a sign of the island's economic prosperity. "Our economy is growing steadily and in a healthy way."

The governor, however, also expressed concern over the increasing number of traffic accidents, particularly those involving teenagers.

Thousands of young people ride motorcycles without driving licenses.

Bali Police said 1,704 traffic accidents occurred in 2009, an increase of 22.62 percent from the previous year.

Bali Police chief Insp. Gen Sutisna said that many people drove recklessly and that teenagers and young adults often violated traffic regulations leading to serious road accidents.

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