Holiday Travellers Urged to Rest for 30 Minutes at Service Stations After Four Hours of Driving

Jakarta — Holiday travellers undertaking long-distance journeys on toll roads have been advised to rest after driving for four hours.

Rest stops at service areas and rest stations (Tempat Istirahat dan Pelayanan) should be limited to no more than 30 minutes to allow facilities to be used alternately by other road users during the Eid holiday travel periods.

Novianto Dwi Wibowo, Operational Director of Astra Infra, stated that periodic rest is important for maintaining driver focus during long journeys.

“We advise road users that after driving for at least four hours, they should take a rest or stop. This can be at a service area or on the toll road. The hope is that by resting, drivers can regain their focus or refresh if already tired,” Novianto said during a media briefing on the 2026 Eid holiday on Monday (9 March 2026) in Jakarta.

“Especially during peak holiday travel periods, we advise road users who have used service areas to use them for a maximum of 30 minutes,” he added.

According to Novianto, the time restriction on rest stops is implemented because service areas are a popular location for holiday travellers to stop, which can lead to congestion.

“We have seen in recent years that service areas have become a favourite rest location. However, the volume of traffic passing through is quite high, so service areas become crowded. With this 30-minute limit, we hope to enable rotation amongst other road users who will use the same facilities,” he explained.

He noted that congestion at service areas typically occurs at specific times, such as during breaking of the fast (berbuka puasa) or dawn meal (sahur) periods during the holiday travel season.

“When such conditions occur and service areas become full, road users can continue their journey to the next service area,” Novianto said.

“Do not wait long there as it could cause congestion in the main lanes and disrupt travel for other road users,” he cautioned.

As an alternative, road users can temporarily exit the toll road to find needed facilities, such as fuel stations or places of worship, and then re-enter the toll road.

“Especially for sections in Java that use closed-system toll transactions. If a service area is full, users can exit at the toll gate to find needed facilities and then re-enter the toll road without incurring additional charges,” he emphasised.