Rubbish Lorry Queue Stretches 1.5 km at Sarimukti Landfill
Rubbish lorries queued for approximately 1.5 kilometres at the Sarimukti landfill in Desa Sarimukti, Bandung Barat regency, West Java on Monday, 16 March 2026. The congestion forced drivers to wait for hours to dispose of waste transported from the Greater Bandung region.
According to observations, the lorry queue extended from the landfill entrance nearly to residential areas in Cicadas, Desa Sarimukti. The concentration of vehicles also disrupted traffic flow on the road connecting Cipatat with Cipeundeuy, Cikalongwetan and Purwakarta.
Sections of the road were filled with rubbish lorries awaiting entry to the disposal area. Some drivers exited their vehicles, with some sitting roadside chatting with fellow drivers, whilst others sheltered in buildings along the roadside.
Raffi, 24, a rubbish lorry driver from Bandung city, reported arriving at the Sarimukti landfill around 01.00 WIB. However, by 08.00 WIB, he had not yet disposed of his waste whilst awaiting his turn in the queue.
“I arrived at 1 am, and still have a long queue to dispose of rubbish. Conditions like this have been ongoing for a while,” Raffi said at the location.
The queue situation meant Raffi and other drivers frequently spent extended periods at the Sarimukti landfill during Ramadhan. They opted to depart at night to secure disposal opportunities despite extended waiting times.
“If we leave in the morning, we won’t get a turn because the landfill closes before we can dispose of our waste. So we’re forced to either sleep in our lorries or in shelters,” Raffi said.
Arief Perdana, Head of the Waste Management Unit of the Regional Landfill at West Java Provincial Environmental Department, stated that the lengthy queues resulted from several factors, including previously implemented waste disposal quota restrictions.
“This resulted from previous quota limitations. Last week’s quota was exhausted, so when full, waste was held. Operations resumed this week,” Arief explained.
Arief noted that queues were further influenced by altered operating hours during Ramadhan. Whilst the Sarimukti landfill typically operates from 05.00-18.30 WIB, during Ramadhan it opened from 06.00-16.30 WIB, later adjusted to 06.00-17.30 WIB to help reduce queuing.
Additionally, slippery ground conditions within the landfill due to rainfall slowed waste disposal operations. Management undertook repairs by adding stone fragments and concrete blocks to facilitate smoother lorry movement.
Severed road access in the landfill expansion zone also affected waste disposal flow. A route previously separating entry and exit now served both directions, slowing vehicle movement.
“Some road sections are indeed disconnected. We will repair them, though it requires substantial budget allocation at the change stage. Requirements are approximately 300 million rupiah. The weighing bridge also previously flooded, so we’re currently measuring by volume. We hope to complete repairs today,” Arief said.