ours away from the opening ceremony of the 2018 Asian Games, the National Police on Saturday held a morning field inspection and introduced traffic restrictions, hoping to clear Jakarta's traffic-clogged roads during the ceremony.
The ceremony, which will start at 7 p.m., takes place in the Gelora Bung Karno (GBK) main stadium in Senayan, Jakarta, with attendance expected to reach 25,000 people.
The National Indonesian Police's traffic unit chief Insp. Gen. Royke Lumowa said there were five locations with restricted access, namely a section of Jl. Hang Lekir from Jl. Pakubuwono to a gas station near Moestopo University in Central Jakarta, Jl. Asia Afrika, Jl. Patal Senayan, Jl. Gerbang Pemuda and Jl. Gerbang Satu Senayan, all of which provide access to the GBK complex.
Vehicles other than invited guests, local residents and Transjakarta buses are prohibited from accessing those roads while the policy is in effect.
"We will close [the roads] down from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. as the ceremony is scheduled to end at 9 p.m., which gives spectators around two hours to fully exit the stadium," he said, adding that access may also be restricted to Jl. Pejompongan Raya, another route to the Senayan area.
In total, there would be around 1,800 officers deployed to monitor traffic, 600 of whom would be monitoring the five roads surrounding GBK, Royke said.
"I urge spectators to take public transportation such as trains or buses to the stadium. For those who still opt to take their own vehicles, they can park them in several places," he said.
The nearest parking lots are Sudirman Central Business District (SCBD), Plaza Senayan mall, Senayan City mall, Fairmount Hotel, the House of Representatives' parking area and the Environment and Forestry Ministry.
The traffic restrictions would only be in effect today and would return to normal on Sunday, Royke said. (nkn)
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