Reading a city from its roads

The flow of vehicles in the western part of Surabaya, East Java, often grinds to a halt not because of traffic lights, but because the road space can no longer keep pace with the area’s growth. In a matter of years, a region once dominated by residential areas has developed into a centre for trade, services, education, and vertical housing. The volume of vehicles has increased, but the road network’s capacity has not expanded at the same speed. The sight of long queues on Jalan Raya Lontar has become a daily reality. Vehicles heading from Pakuwon Trade Centre towards Citraland, or vice versa, converge on a relatively narrow stretch of road. During the morning and evening rush hours, congestion becomes a routine that drains time, energy, and even productivity. Therefore, the opening of the Radial Road Lontar access for a trial period at the end of June 2026 is more than just an addition of a road segment. The policy represents an effort to change how traffic moves in one of Surabaya’s fastest-growing economic zones. The Surabaya city government has chosen to begin with a one-way traffic engineering scheme. Vehicles from the east are directed through Jalan Radial Road, while the opposite flow continues to use Jalan Raya Lontar pending an evaluation. This phased approach demonstrates that road construction does not end with the completion of physical works but must be followed by testing actual traffic behaviour. In many major cities, congestion is rarely solved simply by building new roads. Roads do increase capacity, but people’s travel patterns also constantly evolve. As an area grows denser, new vehicles will fill the available space. This phenomenon is known in transport studies as induced demand, where vehicle usage increases after road capacity is expanded. Consequently, the success of Radial Road Lontar should not be measured solely by the smooth flow of traffic during the first week of the trial. The benchmark is far broader: whether the new road can sustainably alter traffic distribution, reduce travel times, and improve the quality of mobility for residents.