Eid Exodus 2026: Vehicles Entering and Exiting Rest Areas Impact Toll Road Congestion

The Indonesian National Police Traffic Corps has revealed the causes of traffic congestion during the 2026 Eid exodus on the Jakarta-Cikampek Toll Road and the MBZ Elevated Toll Road today. The congestion is triggered by vehicles exiting rest areas.

“There are many possible (causes of congestion). It could be from vehicles exiting the rest area; there are many such possibilities. It could also be an incident, for example, a vehicle with a broken engine that has to pull over, meaning one lane will be occupied for repairs,” said Parmindimwas Subdit Dakgar Dirgakkum Korlantas Polri, Ipda Hanny Neno, to reporters at the Ministry of Transportation on Thursday (19/3/2026).

She stated that vehicles breaking down on the road also contribute to the issue. However, the Traffic Corps is maximally regulating traffic to alleviate the congestion.

“There are many possibilities. As for our maximum efforts, we are regulating traffic as best we can on the ground. Like that,” she explained.

Hanny explained that congestion is also triggered by the flow towards rest areas. Vehicle speeds decrease when heading to rest areas, causing obstructions.

“Congestion due to flow. As I said earlier, when exiting the rest area to re-enter the toll road, it’s slow. So the speed of these vehicles starts to decrease, decrease, and it will also cause hindrance,” she said.

Currently, the Traffic Corps has implemented a one-way system to reduce congestion. However, the density can be alleviated at this time.

“We are implementing one-way. It’s done. We have done our best. But the vehicle capacity is too high with everyone travelling on the same day, so there’s a buildup, but it’s not completely stuck—it’s just moving slowly,” she concluded.