‘Takbiran’ road convoys much safer this year: Police

The Jakarta Police’s chief of operations, Sr. Comr. Agung Budi Maryoto, said on Monday that the city saw much fewer traffic violations in the road convoys held around the city on the eve of Idul Fitri, locally known as takbiran, on Saturday.

“Alhamdulillah [Praise the Lord], the road convoys were much safer this year and the residents were more orderly compared to last year. We still saw some people riding on the roofs of vehicles, but we told them to come down and they obliged,” he told reporters on Monday.

Takbiran held around the city, especially those involving motorcycles, have led to traffic congestion and accidents in previous years.

According to Agung, the police ticketed 532 drivers for traffic violations during this year’s takbiran road convoys, far less than the 1,080 tickets issued last year.

Common violations during the takbiran road convoys included riding on the roofs of public minivans, over-capacity public vehicles and riding motorcycles without helmets, according to Agung.