Jakartans gear up for annual Idul Fitri exodus

It’s that time of year again when Jakarta residents go to their nearest vehicle repair shops or mechanics to have their cars and bikes checked before the long journey home for Idul Fitri.

“We have been quite busy since the middle of Ramadhan,” Arif Sudibyo, a mechanic at a motorcycle garage in Central Jakarta, said.

He said that more and more customers flocked to his garage — especially during weekends — to get their motorcycles checked ahead of the journey home.

“This morning alone we have already worked on 15 motorcycles. This is twice the number we handle on regular days,” Arif told The Jakarta Post.
Annual ritual: Passengers sit and wait while others stand queuing to buy train tickets at Senen train station in Central Jakarta on Sunday. Millions of people are expected to return to their hometowns and villages to celebrate Idul Fitri, which falls on Aug. 30 this year. JP/P.J. Leo

Another repair shop busy with orders ahead of the holiday exodus is Maju Jaya Motor in West Jakarta.

Mechanic Subhi Abdillah said he barely had time for a break from work over the weekend.

“So far we have five motorcycles waiting for a light tune-up and three for engine repairs,” Subhi said. On a slow day, he said, he had no more than two customers a day.

Subhi added that more customers came to his shop because he charged less than better known shops.

Given past experience, Subhi said, business at the shop would peak in the seven days before Idul Fitri.

More than 1.9 million motorcyclists are expected to travel home for Idul Fitri, up 13.92 percent from last year.

The administration also predicted that more people would travel in private vehicles, up 19.99 percent to 3.75 million people.

Like repair shops, car hire firms are starting to see a surge in orders.

“We now have to turn down orders because all of our cars are booked,” Chan Bachtiar from Comfy Auto Rent said.

Bachtiar said customers began placing orders early in the fasting month.

He said that like other car hire companies, comfy increased its fees for the Idul Fitri holiday period.

“We normally charge Rp 2.1 million [US$246] for a 7-day hire, now we charge Rp 500,000 per day,” he told the Post.

The increased prices have not dissuaded holiday travelers. “We have dozens of people on our waiting list,” Bachtiar said.

On Sunday, Senen train station in Central Jakarta saw a surge in the number of homeward-bound travelers on economy-class trains.

Hundreds of would-be passengers flocked to the station’s platform waiting for their train while others lined up in front of counters to buy tickets home.

State railway operator PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) said it would deploy 1,378 additional train cars for 224 additional trips per day for the Idul Fitri holiday period.

Seaport operator PT ASDP said Sunday that it had also begun to see an increase in the number of private vehicles and buses going through its ports.

PT ASDP reported that in Merak, the seaport connecting Java and Sumatra, 500 motorcycles passed through the port per day, a 25 percent increase from 400 per day. The number of buses has also increased to 330 a day from 270.

For the holiday period this year, transportation options out of the capital include 7,292 buses, 244 trains with the capacity to carry 61,680 passengers, 24 ships with a capacity to carry 28,531 passengers and 285 planes with a capacity to carry 39,923 passengers.