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Jokowi calls for earlier trips ahead of looming ‘mudik’ congestion
Traffic interventions in place across Java, Sumatra.
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he government has asked people to make earlier homebound journeys during mudik (exodus) this year in anticipation of nationwide congestion, with some 85 million people expected to travel ahead of Idul Fitri festivities for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic started.
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo warned of “severe congestion” during mudik season, citing a recent Transportation Ministry survey predicting that some 23 million cars and 17 million motorcycles would crowd motorways nationwide over the course of the holiday.
As a precaution, Jokowi called on travelers this year to avoid hitting the road on April 28, 29 and 30 – days that are expected to be the peak of the homebound exodus.
“The government has prepared traffic policies such as odd-even rules and one-way [traffic engineering], as well as a ban on trucks on toll roads,” the President said in a statement on Monday.
“I also invite people to make earlier mudik journeys where their work schedules allow it,” he added.
For the millions of Muslims in Indonesia, especially on heavily populated Java, this Ramadan will be the first time in two years that they are allowed to head home overland to reunite with relatives and celebrate the national holiday.
The government had already decided to extend the Lebaran season by mandating more collective leave days, effectively shuttering offices for the entire week of Idul Fitri, which falls on May 2 and 3 on the official calendar.
However, the sheer volume of people expected to travel also has authorities concerned over potential gridlocks.
Last week, the head of the National Police’s Traffic Corps (Korlantas), Insp. Gen. Firman Shantyabudi, said authorities would impose one-way traffic along a number of major land routes over the course of Islam’s biggest holiday.
“We are taking steps to mitigate congestion. The simplest way to manage road capacity is to add a counterflow lane. If that isn’t enough, we will make all eastbound traffic from Jakarta one-way,” Firman said, as quoted by kompas.com.
The traffic policy will come into effect on April 28 between 5 p.m. and 12 a.m. along the Jakarta-Cikampek toll road, and will extend all the way to the Kalikangkung toll gate in Semarang, Central Java. One-way traffic engineering on April 29 and 30 will remain in effect from 7 a.m. to midnight and between 7 a.m. and midday on May 1.
For the homecoming journey, authorities plan to impose the policy on the same routes but in the opposite direction, starting from May 6 and 7 from 2 p.m. until midnight. On May 8, the last day of the Lebaran season, one-way traffic westbound will apply between 7 a.m. and 3 a.m. the following day.
Read also: Jokowi says holiday exodus can go ahead this year as COVID cases ease
Contingencies
To facilitate mudik travel for the less fortunate, the Transportation Ministry is also offering 21,000 free bus trips, on top of the 10,500 booked-out trips it offered earlier this month.
The program has designated destinations across the eastern half of Java, including Cirebon and Garut in West Java and Tegal, Semarang, Demak, Kudus, Boyolali, Surakarta, Klaten, Wonogiri, Wonosari, Magelang, Wonosobo, Kebumen and Purwokerto in Central Java.
For mudik travelers heading to Sumatra overland, authorities are anticipating increased congestion on the Trans-Sumatra toll road, which will connect cities from Lampung and Palembang all the way to Aceh in the north.
The Public Works and Housing Ministry has insisted that the Lampung-Palembang segment of the highway can be used throughout the mudik season despite some ongoing roadwork, and that contingency plans are in place for potential gridlock.
In addition to traffic interventions, this year’s Lebaran exodus requires people to observe COVID-19 travel mandates. For travelers who have yet to receive a third vaccine shot, they would have to be able to produce a negative rapid antigen or polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test result when prompted during random spot-checks and travel checkpoints.
Those who have gotten their booster shots and travelers under 18 years are exempt from this requirement.
The rules are also largely the same for air travel.
M. Holik Muardi, senior branch communications manager for Soekarno-Hatta international airport in Banten, said that if a passenger has had two vaccine jabs, he or she must still provide negative test results taken no later than two days prior to departure.
“And if an individual has received only one vaccine jab or none at all, they would have to produce a medical reference letter,” Holik said on Wednesday, as quoted by tempo.co.
State-owned PT Angkasa Pura II has predicted that up to 3.42 million passengers will crowd the 20 airports that it operates throughout the mudik period between April 22 and May 13. For its busiest airport, Soekarno-Hatta, passenger numbers are expected to surpass 2.29 million over the course of the holiday season.
As host to the largest population of Muslims worldwide, authorities this year are expecting nearly three times the number of mudik travelers compared with pre-pandemic times. So far, high public mobility over an extended holiday period had become the bane of the healthcare system, as it has almost always resulted in a transmission spike.
But now that the country is further along on its vaccination program and more people have developed immunity, officials are optimistic about potentially fewer infections, even though some still warn against overseas travel for fear of importing dangerous COVID-19 variants.
The Health Ministry has called on people to complete their vaccinations early and to set up their Electronic Health Alert Card (eHAC) documentation through the PeduliLindungi tracing app.
