Ministry to ban trucks from passing roads to Merak

Transportation Minister Freddy Numberi said that the ministry had banned certain types of trucks to reach Merak port in Cilegon, Banten, by using roads utilized by hundreds of people during the Lebaran exodus.

The ban, which will be applied four days before Lebaran and one day after the festivities, is the ministry’s move to reduce chronic traffic jams on roads packed with vehicles every Lebaran.

According to the minister, the regulation will make it easier for passengers to board ships and ferries.

The ban will also help trucks carrying food, to which the ban will not apply, to access the ferries.

“They [passengers and foodstuff trucks] will not cause traffic jams and long lines at Merak,” he said on Tuesday.

Coordinating Minister for the Economy Hatta Rajasa previously said that the number of people going on this year’s Lebaran exodus would be 3.95 percent more than the 14.8 million people in 2010.

The number of people using sea transportation is predicted to rise from around 900,000 people in 2010 to 1 million in 2011.