Government Anticipates Vehicle Congestion at Christmas and New Year Holiday Congestion Points
Jakarta – The Christmas and New Year (Nataru) holidays are predicted to be the peak travel time for people.
Head of the Traffic Corps (Kakorlantas) of the Indonesian National Police, Inspector General of Police Aan Suhanan, said that there was a significant increase in mobility, with an estimated 110.6 million people traveling, an increase of 2.8 percent from the previous year.
“This means that around 39.30 percent of Indonesians will travel during the Christmas and New Year holidays,” said Aan.
Based on survey data from the Transportation Policy Agency (BKT), the majority of people will use private cars (36.07 percent), followed by motorbikes (17.71 percent), buses (15.04 percent), and intercity trains (12.85 percent).
To anticipate congestion, the Indonesian National Police Traffic Corps has mapped out congestion-prone points on a number of main routes, especially toll roads.
“We convey that the movement on the toll road from Jakarta to Cikampek reached 48 percent, Cikampek towards Cipali 52 percent, and from kilometer 66 towards the Purbaleunyi Toll Road 23 percent,” explained Aan.
In addition, there are several important points that must be anticipated, such as KM 25 on the Cikampek Toll Road, the JORR intersection, and KM 47-48 on the lower lane which often experiences bottlenecks.
“We will conduct traffic engineering at that point, including managing density at rest areas which are a major concern due to limited capacity,” Aan continued.
Congestion is also predicted to occur on the Cipali-Surabaya Trans Java Toll Road, especially at KM 72 and Batang.
“If not anticipated, this could cause slowdowns and congestion. We are also mitigating the lanes on the Bali, Medan, and Purbaleunyi Toll Roads to reduce the risk of congestion and accidents,” he added.
Jasa Marga President Director, Subakti Syukur, estimates that the peak of the 2024-2025 Christmas and New Year (Nataru) homecoming flow will occur on December 21, 2024.
“Meanwhile, the return flow will peak during Christmas and New Year, which is Sunday, December 29, 2024,” said Subakti.
To anticipate traffic congestion, Jasa Marga will limit the operation of freight vehicles with three axles or more.
In addition, traffic engineering in the form of contraflow will be implemented at certain points.
Functional road sections will also be operated, and lane widening will be carried out to reduce congestion, ensuring that people’s travel during the holidays remains smooth.
In Yogyakarta, the DIY Transportation Agency (Dishub) is also preparing to face a surge in vehicles, especially at the eastern entrance which is connected to the Klaten-Prambanan Toll Road.
“We predict that the buildup of vehicles will be concentrated around the Prambanan toll exit,” said Acting Head of the DIY Transportation Agency, Wiyos Santoso.
Security posts will be set up at various entry points to ensure smooth traffic flow.
The government urges the public to plan their trips well, monitor traffic conditions through the Korlantas Polri social media, and avoid peak departure times.
“This anticipation aims to maintain security, comfort, and smoothness during the Christmas and New Year holidays,” concluded Aan.
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