T

ruckers are concerned about lengthy detours after an accident on Saturday forced authorities to close the central section of the Trans-Sumatra highway to all vehicles.

“We advise all trucks and buses to avoid the road section in Way Kanan regency,” Way Kanan Traffic Police chief Adj. Comr. Muhammad Reza said.

The Way Besai bridge was closed on Thursday after a fully laden truck, driven by Juniarto, 35, overturned, damaging a support column and spilling 30 tons of coal, Reza said.

The closure of the bridge in Banjamasih village, Baradatu district, affects transportation between Lampung and South Sumatra and other Sumatran provinces.

Lampung Transportation Office and the Way Kanan Police were preparing to open more detours through Simpang Tulungbuyut, Negararatu and Negeriagung villages to Gunungkatun village bordering Ogan Komering Ulu regency in South Sumatra.

Local truck drivers expressed doubts on the effectiveness of the detours, saying Way Kanan’s mostly unpaved roads would be muddy and near-impassable in the rain.

The detours would cause further misery for truck drivers attempting to traverse Lampung or bound for the congestion-prone Bakauheni-Merak ferry crossing, one trucker said.

“The roads in Lampung are inferior. Besides the longer time needed due to the detour and poor road conditions, we also have to pay off police officers and hoodlums. Our operational expenses are all spent on the road,” said Suyatno, 32, a truck driver plying the route between Jambi and Jakarta.

“We’re also afraid to take the detour since Way Kanan is a notorious crime-infested area. Many bus and truck drivers have been victims of extortion in Way Kanan,” he added.

According to the South Sumatra Transportation Office, the Way Kanan bridge has been steadily sinking since its frame was damaged, leading the agency to declare the bridge unusable by four-wheeled vehicles.

The Way Besai bridge, built in the 1970s, developed a tilt after the accident that added to the damage caused by the continual passage of heavy trucks.