MPR: Transport readiness for Eid travellers must ensure safety and comfort
Jakarta — The Deputy Chair of the Indonesian People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) Lestari Moerdijat has stated that transport readiness for Eid travellers returning home for Idul Fitri 1447 Hijriah must ensure safety and comfort as one form of state protection for its citizens.
The statement was made by Lestari when opening an online discussion titled “Preparations for Eid Homecoming 2026” held by the Denpasar Discussion Forum 12 on Wednesday, as confirmed by information received in Jakarta.
“The readiness of transport facilities and infrastructure used by homebound travellers must be ensured to be safe and comfortable by all relevant parties, to realise the protection of every citizen during the Eid holiday,” she said.
She commended the government’s initial steps in preparing the 2026 Eid homecoming service by making early preparations and providing sufficient time for travellers through a work-from-anywhere (WFA) policy for civil servants.
With flexible travel time for the journey home, she hopes the public can be safer and more comfortable than last year. She also hopes that travellers’ vigilance can increase, given that the current impacts of climate crisis often trigger extreme weather.
“Efforts to realise a safe and comfortable homecoming are the responsibility of all relevant parties, including the community,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Director of Operations for PT Kereta Api Indonesia (KAI) Awan Hermawan Purwadinata, who appeared as a resource person in the discussion, said this year’s homecoming period lasts 22 days, from 11 March to 1 April 2026.
PT KAI, according to Awan, has conducted technical preparations for all trains and their equipment to be ready for operation during the homecoming period.
It is estimated that the frequency of train journeys during this year’s Eid homecoming will increase by 2.1 per cent (49,866 journeys) compared to the previous year, while transport capacity will increase by 5.4 per cent (61.88 million seats).
Awan revealed that the company is also implementing a free homecoming programme for the public by accommodating motorcycle travellers.
On another front, the Director of Law Enforcement for the Traffic Police Corps (Korlantas) of the National Police Brigadier General Faizal explained that the police have conducted readiness checks on a number of homecoming and return routes.
Faizal assessed that last year’s homecoming operation was quite good. The force hopes the 2026 homecoming service will be even better.
He acknowledged that the number of accidents during the homecoming period is still dominated by two-wheeled vehicles. Therefore, the police thank PT KAI and other parties who helped homebound motorcycle travellers by providing a free homecoming programme.
According to him, a number of free homecoming programmes have helped reduce accidents involving two-wheeled vehicles.
Faizal stated that the key to implementing this year’s homecoming service is the coordination and synergy of all parties in realising a safe and comfortable homecoming.
Meanwhile, the Director of Operations for PT Pelindo Prasetyadi stated that ahead of the Eid holiday, there has been an increase in cargo transport at several ports.
Therefore, the company is implementing traffic management and capacity policies to prevent truck congestion around ports and is preparing buffer zones around ports to prevent traffic congestion.
“PT Pelindo is also preparing a booking system to make it easier for users to access shipping services,” he said.
Regarding air transport, the General Manager of PT Angkasa Pura Indonesia KC for Ahmad Yani Airport Semarang, Sulistyo Yulianto, stated that Ahmad Yani Airport during the homecoming period is the gateway to Central Java and a transit point towards East Java.
He explained that Ahmad Yani Airport serves 6.9 million passengers per year with daily operating hours from 07:00 to 21:00. The airport serves 13 domestic flight routes and two international routes to Kuala Lumpur and Singapore.
Sulistyo mentioned that a number of homecoming posts at the airport and its surroundings have been prepared to anticipate the surge in the number of passengers, the peak of which is estimated to occur on 19 March.
“Passenger movements using Ahmad Yani Airport services during this year’s homecoming are estimated to total 154,000 passengers,” he said.