Ahead of Mudik 2026, Syaiful Huda Urges Government to Prioritise Repairs to Arterial Roads

INDONESIA – Deputy Chairman of Commission V of the Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI), Syaiful Huda, has emphasised the importance of road infrastructure repair, particularly arterial routes, as a top priority in preparing Mudik Lebaran 2026. He said the relevant ministries must ensure that roads damaged or with potholes caused by the heavy loads of trucks are repaired before the exodus begins, so as not to impede public mobility. ‘In the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing (Kemen PU) for example, we are asking that arterial roads with potholes—caused by the constant passage of heavy trucks—be anticipated and repaired properly. After the parliamentary recess begins on the 9th, we will invite them to report what percentage of the holes have been repaired,’ Huda said in Senayan, Jakarta, on Thursday, 5 March 2026. The PKB faction lawmaker also explained that evaluating last year’s Mudik operation should be the primary basis for enhancing services this year. In addition to infrastructure issues, he highlighted the importance of effectiveness of the free mudik programme through a single-account registration system to prevent empty seats due to double registrations at various locations. ‘The target plan to facilitate free mudik, we want all seats to be filled properly. That means involving all stakeholders, including the single account system, so that people do not register at multiple places and end up with empty seats,’ he asserted. Furthermore, Huda appreciated the policy of reducing air ticket prices this year by 18 percent. He also urged the police to tighten checks on unroadworthy vehicles or ‘zombie cars’ at various checkpoints, and asked BMKG to continue updating weather information related to tidal flooding along the Mudik routes. ‘BMKG has updated that during the Mudik period the weather will be rainy. Therefore we must anticipate flood points, including tidal flooding in several places, and potentially slippery roads. This update needs to reach prospective travellers continually.’