Relocating Street Food Vendors Isn't the Magic Fix

Government support is the missing link.

Oct 22, 2024

A *gerobak* (cart) selling iced drinks in Jogja (Photo by: Priyanka Tiona via @gerak__gerik)

Halo and happy Tuesday! This is Fabi, writing from both Jakarta Selatan and Jogja.

Welcome to Kepayang. If we haven't met yet, I’m a writer and the one behind Kepayang. I started it as a place to share my thoughts on food, culture, and sustainability, but it’s turned into a fun community for food lovers and anyone who likes chatting about food!

Today’s newsletter is about street food vendors and the love-hate relationship I have with the whole situation. On one side, I love how these vendors made getting food super accessible. But on the other hand, I’m also a commuter who often get my public spaces and sidewalks robbed by these vendors. The government came up with few solutions like moving them to shiny new buildings, but honestly, it feels like just a quick fix for a bigger problem: the lack of decent jobs in Indonesia.

So, grab your fun drinks and enjoy the read!

We Indonesians may not have good infrastructures and our government may be busy playing Zuma on their desktops, but we, are blessed with good and accessible food all year around. If you spend a day commuting in Jakarta, Jogja, or Medan, you might notice how we love shape-shifting our train and bus stations and transit points into a commercial area. In an ideal state, sellers like coffee vendors, minimarkets, and snack stands should set up their kiosks neatly in a designated area. But until today, you’ll unfortunately still find some people selling in places they’re not supposed to – like the sidewalk, or even around the main entrance to the station and taking over public spaces and creating a lot of issues.

Picture by Kompas.com (Aisyah Sekar Ayu Maharani)

Above is a picture of Terowongan Kendal (Kendal Tunnel) in Jakarta, which used to be a street for cars but has now been transformed into a pedestrian-only area to connect four modes of public transportation – bus, train, MRT, and LRT. But guess who wants to be included as pedestrian? That’s right, pedagang kaki lima (street food vendors with mobile setups, or PKL). As you can see, a large portion of the space is taken up by PKL and their gerobak, despite the "no selling" rule clearly displayed on a big sign. This brings up a bigger question:

Why are there so many PKL? And why do they have to sell in areas that disrupt pedestrian traffic?

To answer this, let’s start with the stats. Micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) make up around 99% of all business units in Indonesia, of which, 40% of them belong in the food and beverages (F&B) sector. F&B businesses came in many shapes and forms, from restaurants, cafes, bakery, to warung (small shops or food stalls) and PKL.

If your first thought is a mix of surprise and admiration for Indonesians' strong entrepreneurial spirit, you're not wrong. But this conclusion only tells half the story, because unfortunately, it is also an indicator of how the governments have failed to create formal job opportunities. Whether they like it or not, those without jobs have no choice but to start their own businesses, essentially, create their own goddamn job. It’s giving: DIY era. And what happens when there’s too much competition? People start fighting for space, rent prices rise, and it pushes them to become mobile instead.

Sign at Yogyakarta’s Kilometer Zero reminding vendors not to set up shop in the area, keeping the space clear for pedestrians. (Photo by: Chalafabia Haris)

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But to say that the government didn’t provide care for PKL is misleading.

In fact, many local governments have recognised the issue and offered solutions by either reorganising existing areas, creating newly designated zones, or encouraging PKLs to relocate to newly built buildings. Unfortunately, many PKLs resist these offers, and some have even protested against these moves.

Some stories for further reading (Bahasa Indonesia):

Jl. Malioboro, DI Yogyakarta (2024): In 2022, two buildings (Teras Malioboro I and II) were constructed to relocate PKLs from Jl. Malioboro, a popular tourist spot in Yogyakarta. Despite this, many vendors continue selling on the street and have staged protests against the planned 2025 relocation.
Bogor, Jawa Barat (2024): The Bogor government demolished 300+ PKL stalls in the Puncak area as many PKLs resisted the move despite prior warnings and relocation offers to the new site at Rest Area Gunung Mas.
Medan, Sumatra Utara (2024): Medan City Government designed zoning categories to regulate areas designated for PKL to operate, and Medan Satpol PP recently cleared PKLs from Sukaramai Market to ensure traffic flow. Busy busy times for hosting PON XXI Aceh-Sumut 2024.

PKL vendors have the advantage of being mobile and choosing when and where to sell. Of course they're not giving that up.

The term PKL literally translates to "five feet sellers," referring to how the vendors have two feet, and their gerobak has three (two from the wheels and one from the wooden stand). You can sell almost anything in your gerobak. A mie bakso (noodle with meatballs) vendor will boil their noodles, meatballs, and veggies in a stove and pot built into their cart. A roti bakar (toast) seller grills their bread on a flat pan that’s part of the cart. And a batagor (fried meatballs and tofu) vendor has a deep fryer in theirs too.

The mobile nature of PKL gives these vendors many advantages, including the flexibility to choose where and when to sell. Some PKLs will set up their gerobak near schools during dismissal time, where many kids gather. And later in the afternoon, they'll move their gerobak to public parks, where there are crowds. Other PKLs, may also choose public spaces like transit hubs and around train stations and bus stops to sell.

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With this flexibility, it's a no-brainer for them to skip a fixed spot, especially when there’s no rent or taxes to pay.

The result is that the community is left to handle the occupation of public spaces and the waste that follows. Including:

First, PKLs occupy pedestrian areas, like the Kendal tunnel, blocking walkways and creating congestion with long lines and people stopping to buy and eat.
Second, the waste left behind after they finish selling adds to the burden on the cleaning staff, contributing to more clutter and requiring extra maintenance.

Moreover, PKL also has an impact from a business-owner perspective.

Aditya, an F&B entrepreneur in Solo, has had a few run-ins with PKL selling near his restaurant. "The issues range from small things, like fighting over parking space, to customers sneaking food from PKL but eating at my place," he shared.

The parking space problem can be pretty significant too. "A friend of mine even had to close their business because, at night, the sidewalks were taken over by PKL. The impact? Business owners like them were left with no parking space, which killed their business" Aditya added.

Jl. Malioboro in Jogja, is mostly cleared of PKL now (2024), but you can still spot one here and there. (Photo by: Chalafabia Haris)

PKL do cause issues, but relocation often doesn’t fully solve them. It just moves the problem from sidewalks to fancier spaces without really helping vendors thrive.

An article by Song and Taylor (2016) laid out very comprehensive insights into the pain points that these PKLs experience once being relocated, including:

Reduced customer base and sales: Loss of regular customers who are familiar with the old location, which results in decreased sales.
Higher Operating Costs: New areas may come with higher rent or additional costs, causing financial strain from moving costs to new permits or licences
Displacement of Community Ties: Losing the support network of other vendors or neighbourhood connections that were built over time in the old spot.

Relocating PKL isn’t the magic fix—it’s just a band-aid on a bigger issue. Beyond moving them to shiny new markets, the government should actually support them in ways that matter. This means giving them the tools to succeed, like business, operational, and financial skills, providing basics like clean water and trash collection, and even ramping up marketing to bring in more customers.

If the government really wants to make a difference, they’ve got to tackle the root cause: the lack of decent jobs.

Instead of just clearing up public spaces and sidewalks, we should also be focusing on creating opportunities, whether it’s through job training, business support, or boosting the local economy. At the end of the day, it’s not just about moving them, it’s about setting them up to thrive.

What do you think? Let me know in the comments below!