Cause of Severe Congestion for Mudik Travellers at Gilimanuk Port Revealed

The cause of severe congestion among mudik (holiday homecoming) travellers at Gilimanuk Port, Jembrana, Bali, has been revealed. The Director General of Land Transport at the Ministry of Transport (Kemenhub), Aan Suhanan, stated that the severe congestion occurs because Gilimanuk Port’s capacity is unable to accommodate the increase in passenger and vehicle volume.

Aan disclosed that the surge in passenger and vehicle volume results from Lebaran falling close to Nyepi. Residents departing Bali are beginning their journeys earlier before Gilimanuk Port closes for Nyepi.

“This is because Nyepi holiday falls close to the Lebaran holiday. There is indeed an increase in volume. The volume from Gilimanuk shows an increase heading towards Java,” Aan said on Monday (16 March 2026), as reported by detikFinance.

Over the past three days, residents wishing to cross out of Bali have continued to increase from the Denpasar and Buleleng direction. The pattern shows that residents heading to Java arrive at the port after Maghrib prayers until the early morning.

Data from the Lebaran Transport Command Centre recorded a total of 80,416 passengers on the crossing route on day H-6 of Lebaran, rising 33.8% compared with the same period last year which saw 60,099 passengers. On the other hand, heavy-duty trucks with three or more axles continue to operate in large numbers. This has rendered road capacity unable to accommodate the increase in volume occurring.

Regarding infrastructure, Aan stated that the capacity of the Ketapang-Gilimanuk crossing route is indeed not as large as the Merak-Bakauheni route. With only eight berths across two sides and a limited fleet of large vessels, capacity is constrained.

“There are only 8-9 vessels of 2,000 gross tonnes and above; the remaining vessels are 2,000 gross tonnes and below. So the transport capacity is indeed limited,” Aan said.

Furthermore, Gilimanuk Port is the sole crossing port serving as the gateway for entry and exit to Bali island, with traffic concentrated at this port alone. Unlike Merak and Bakauheni ports, which have numerous other crossing ports in their vicinity allowing for traffic distribution, such dispersal is not possible here.