W

ith the Christmas and New Year holidays approaching, relevant authorities have taken steps to deal with an anticipated massive flow of vehicles leaving Jakarta and to predict peak traffic.

The chief of the National Police’s Traffic Corps, Insp. Gen. Refdi Andri, predicted that the peak of the exodus would happen three days before Christmas, when more than 88,000 cars would leave Jakarta.

“We predict the busiest day will be on Dec. 22 and they will return to Jakarta on Dec. 25. Meanwhile, for the new year, holiday goers are expected to travel on Dec. 28 and return on Jan. 1,” Refdi said as reported on the police’s official website.

He added that the number of travelers would not be as high as during the Idul Fitri homebound exodus, locally known as mudik. However, authorities would still halt some construction projects along the Jakarta-Cikampek toll road to ease traffic flow.

The Greater Jakarta Transportation Agency previously announced that from Dec. 19 to 22, all construction projects on Jakarta’s main gateway would be temporarily stopped and work would resume from Dec. 25 to 28.

“The traffic will not be as congested as during Idul Fitri,” Refdi said, adding that his force had communicated with relevant agencies, such as state-owned toll road operator Jasa Marga, to manage traffic during the peak by applying several measures.