Roadwork may disrupt traffic during Idul Fitri
Roadwork may disrupt traffic during Idul Fitri
JAKARTA (JP): Sporadic road repairs along the northern coast of Java will disturb the traffic flow from Jakarta to Central and East Java and vice versa, an official has warned.
The head of the city land transportation control agency, JP Sepang, said that buses returning to Jakarta to pick up more Idul Fitri holidaymakers will be caught in heavy traffic congestion.
"As many as 3.5 million Jakartans will gradually leave for their hometowns, some in Central and East Java. Two million of them will travel by public bus. More than 8,000 special buses are expected to commute to and from Jakarta from Feb. 13 to March 2. Congestion on the northern coast will likely be unavoidable," Sepang said.
Feb. 13 is predicted to be the start of people leaving en masse for their hometowns.
He said every day thousands of passengers will be stranded because the buses returning to Jakarta will be caught in prolonged traffic jams.
The peak of this year's exodus will be four days before Idul Fitri, on Feb.16, and end two days later.
Sepang therefore has urged Jakartans to go to their hometowns to celebrate Idul Fitri early, before Feb.13.
"If husbands cannot do that, try to send your wives and children as soon as possible. Husbands can join them later," he said.
The terminals
Sepang made the statements when visiting the Parkir Timur Senayan, Lebak Bulus, Kampung Rambutan and Pulo Gadung bus terminals to inspect their readiness for Idul Fitri.
Conditions in the terminals are relatively normal at present because the number of vehicles and passengers have not increased as yet. For instance in Pulo Gadung the number of passengers is still about 20,000 per day. The number is expected to reach 50,000 per day in the peak period.
The government predicts that 3.5 million Jakartans will join the upcoming Idul Fitri exodus, with two million of them traveling by bus, one million by train and the remaining 500,000 traveling in private cars or airplanes.
Last year 1.61 million Jakartans left the city by bus to celebrate Idul Fitri.
For Idul Fitri the city administration will provide 8,444 buses, comprising 6,694 regular buses and 1,750 buses as backups.
Sepang has guaranteed the safety of city buses, saying they will undergo thorough checking in bus terminals before picking up passengers.
Buses will leave the city from four major bus terminals: Pulo Gadung, Kampung Rambutan, both in East Jakarta, Kalideres in West Jakarta and Lebak Bulus in South Jakarta.
The city administration has prepared 21 additional bus stations as back up terminals. They are Rawamangun in East Jakarta, Tanjung Priok, Pangkalan Tanah Merdeka, Muara Angke, Pluit in North Jakarta and Pelabuhan Nusantara in West Jakarta.
In South Jakarta the terminals are in Pasar Minggu, Jl. Kapten Tendean, Jl. Bintaro, Jl. Abd. Rochim and Patal Senayan. In West Jakarta the terminals are Grogol, Citra Land, Daan Mogot and Cengkareng Drain.
In Central Jakarta, they are Damri bus depot, Parkir Timur Senayan and four PPD depots in Ciputat, Daan Mogot, Klender and Kramat Jati.(yns)