Chronology of Severe Congestion on East Sumatra Route towards Palembang

The exodus of travellers on the East Sumatra route through Jambi-Palembang in South Sumatra caused considerable frustration amongst holiday-goers. Since Saturday evening on 14 March, traffic on this vital Sumatran highway had been severely congested, with vehicles at a standstill.

The congestion was caused by not only the heavy volume of holiday traffic but also large tonnage trucks on the road with steep uphill sections, which further impeded vehicle flow.

Putri Salamah, 30, a resident of Jambi, described her ordeal after becoming trapped in hours-long congestion around Bayung Lecir in South Sumatra whilst attempting to travel home to Jambi from Jakarta. She attributed the congestion partly to the reckless behaviour of holiday-goers, buses, and freight trucks: “They dared to cut lanes on both sides of the road,” she told Media Indonesia on Tuesday, 17 March.

The congestion was further exacerbated by numerous traffic accidents along the route, particularly in South Sumatra. Many travellers experienced fuel shortages, depleted food and water supplies, and overheating in their vehicles during daylight hours.

In response, police authorities strictly halted large tonnage trucks and directed them to designated parking areas along the route in both Jambi and South Sumatra. Several trucks exceeding weight and dimension limits, some of which had previously been ticketed by Jambi Regional Police Traffic Directorate, were intercepted, though many others managed to evade enforcement.

According to Jambi Regional Police Traffic Director Senior Commissioner Adi Benny Cahyono, following his inspection of the Jambi-South Sumatra border on Tuesday afternoon, traffic conditions had begun to normalise. “Thankfully, from our monitoring throughout the afternoon, the exodus traffic, particularly on the East Sumatra route towards Palembang in South Sumatra, has begun to improve. This is the result of the traffic flow management system we implemented,” he stated.

To ease congestion in South Sumatra, the Traffic Directorate coordinated with all Traffic Units across Jambi police jurisdictions from Monday 16 March through Tuesday morning 17 March, temporarily closing access to holiday-goers and freight trucks along the Jambi-Palembang route. Holiday travellers from Jambi heading to Palembang, Lampung, or Java were diverted and advised to use the Central Sumatra route via Sarolangun district in Jambi.

Cahyono explained: “This traffic diversion strategy aims to reduce vehicle congestion on the East Sumatra route, which experienced a significant increase during the peak Eid holiday exodus period.”