Java's roads packed with holiday travelers

Java's roads packed with holiday travelers

Nana Rukmana and Suherdjoko, The Jakarta Post, Indramayu/Semarang

Driyanto, a 42-year-old man from Jakarta, left the capital at 4
a.m. on Friday for Banyumas municipality in Central Java.

He arrived in Cirebon, West Java, 12 hours later. The trip
normally takes about four hours.

"I arrived here at around 4 p.m., meaning it took 12 hours
from Jakarta," Driyanto told The Jakarta Post while taking a
travel break in Cirebon.

Many other homegoers were similarly trapped in severe traffic
jams along West Java highways, as the annual exodus of millions
of people traveling overland to their hometowns to celebrate Idul
Fitri, the end of Ramadhan, reached a peak on Friday.

Thousands of vehicles packed with passengers from Jakarta and
their belongings were seen crawling along West Java's northern
coastal road (Pantura) in Indramayu regency, with Idul Fitri just
two days away.

Heavy traffic was also reported along a number of highways on
the Bogor-Puncak-Cianjur route and at the Nagreg three-way
intersection in Bandung, the capital city of West Java.

Traffic congestion was made worse by a number of crowded
traditional markets along Pantura, from Pamanukan in Subang
regency to Patrol in Indramayu.

Traffic jams are expected to continue until Saturday night,
hours before the non-obligatory Idul Fitri prayer.

Hundreds of police officers, deployed to ensure smooth traffic
flow, appeared powerless. Traffic congestion began to ease after
more personnel from the Subang and Indramayu police stations
arrived to bring order around the markets.

"We have done everything to solve the problem, including
stationing policemen to form barricades along the road at the
markets, but traffic jams remain because traders, buyers and road
users are oblivious to the need to jointly maintain order,"
Indramayu Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Johni Suroto said on
Friday.

Some drivers confirmed that congestion was largely due to
crowded markets along the northern coastal road, saying it took
three hours to pass some markets.

Along the Indramayu route, traditional markets are located in
Patrol, Losarang, Bangkir and Karangampel, which are usually
packed with shoppers and traders. There are also a number of
other markets along the Cirebon highway.

Traffic also came to a complete stop for hours at a number of
spots along the Bogor-Puncak-Cianjur route.

"Crowds were seen gathering at a number of markets in
Magamendung and Cisarua, also hindering traffic flow," Bogor
Police chief Sr. Comr. Muhammad Taufik was quoted by Antara as
saying.

The Nagreg three-way intersection was also severely congested,
with the road proving unable to accommodate the huge number of
vehicles from Jakarta and other cities in West Java, which were
heading for cities in Central and East Java.

The traffic jam there stretched for seven kilometers.

It takes only five minutes on normal days to travel the
Rancaekek-Nagreg route, but it took more than one hour on Friday.

Long lines of vehicles were seen in Batang, one of the cities
along Central Java's northern coastal road, where thousands of
cars pass.

Central Java Governor Mardiyanto admitted that at least 112
traditional markets along the province's main roads were
hindering traffic flow.

"Fortunately, the traffic jams can be reduced because we deal
with them seriously," he said in Semarang.

However, the governor warned travellers of flooding and
landslides in Kebumen, Banyumas and Banjarnegara.