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This weekend marks the start of the annual human exodus,
which for decades has characterized Idul Fitri in Indonesia. With the Islamic
holiday very likely to fall on Aug. 8 and 9, many have prepared themselves for
the arduous, tiring homebound journey.
Joining the Idul Fitri exodus has become an annual ritual for my family of four, who are just part of an estimated 24 million people leaving their places of residence for their respective hometowns across the country. According to the Transportation Ministry, the number of homeward bound holiday travelers this year will increase by 8.6 percent from last year.
For those who are cramming Java’s roads on public buses and private cars, the struggle to reach home reads like the same old story. So does the major repair of the Java north costal highway (Pantura) ahead of Idul Fitri.
As far as I can remember, the fastest travel time from Jakarta to my hometown Semarang during Idul Fitri was seven hours in 2002. I can still recall the relatively clear traffic and smooth roads along Pantura when we completed the 480 kilometer route.
Unfortunately since that year, the busy highway has been unable to accommodate the fast growing number of vehicles carrying holiday makers. The year 2006 was a nightmare for my family as it took us 26 hours to reach Semarang.
The overcrowded Pantura route has been worsening each year, but the homecoming journey resembles a bad habit that you could never quit. Whenever I told my friends that we would leave for Semarang by car ahead of Idul Fitri, they shouted at me in disbelief. “You’ve never learned anything, haven’t you?”
For some holidaymakers, it is much more practical to just book a flight. However, soaring air fares reaching up to 100 percent during the Idul Fitri season has deterred people from travelling by air according to the Indonesia Air Ticketing Companies Association (Astindo).
Despite the hike, the number of air travelers is set to increase to over 3.75 million this year, according to the Transportation Ministry, up by 11.7 percent from the 2012 mark. Some domestic carriers already announced plans to provide extra seats to meet the rising demand.
Train tickets have always been sold out one month before Idul Fitri as the state railway operator PT KAI allows passengers to buy ticket three months ahead of the designated departure date.
Many refuse to take buses or trains in order to save money, but maybe not their lives, as they prefer motorcycles. Despite the government’s request for travelers to switch to public transportation and free rides provided by government agencies and private companies, the number of holiday makers who will travel by motorcycle is estimated to increase by 35 percent this year.
Safety does not count for the daredevil riders, although the police say that 70 percent of over 4,300 road accidents during Idul Fitri last year involved motorcycles. Unfortunately, it is not easy for the police to give them tickets or ban them from continuing their journeys. The only thing the police can do is make sure that the motorcyclists ride on the safe lane, although a lot of them ignore the traffic rules.
The government’s decision to raise fuel prices recently is predicted to encourage more people to ride their motorbikes for their holiday exodus. It is estimated that the number of motorcyclists is likely to rise by 35 percent compared to last year.
However, road users are still facing another stumbling block: the poor conditions in some sections of the Pantura highway. Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto has stated that the country’s busiest national road network is in good shape and major problems such as pot holes and uneven roads between Merak and Surabaya have been repaired.
The minister explained that 229 out of 1,316 kilometers of the road had been constructed with rigid surfacing instead of asphalt and another 106 km with high quality asphalt to handle the traffic better. The ministry has predicted that the average daily traffic would increase by 6 percent to 46,640 vehicles during the exodus. Around 70 percent of 11.5 million vehicles traveling in this year’s Idul Fitri holiday would pass through the highway, according to data from the Transportation Ministry.
Djoko added that the ministry had spent 40 percent of the Rp 1.28 trillion (US$124.16 million) allocated for repair work this year, which was carried out every year ahead of Idul Fitri. He also said that three overpass projects – in Semarang, Central Java; Jombor in Yogyakarta and Peterongan in Jombang, East Java – worth Rp 309 billion along the highway had been finished.
The repeated Pantura repair works has prompted the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) to consider an investigation. BPK chairman Hadi Poernomo said that the focus of the investigation was on why the road needed repairs every year and vehicle tonnage regulations, among other things. The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) is also verifying reports filed by the public concerning alleged corruption in the Pantura roadwork projects.
Although, even if corruption is absent, the annual repair work only indicates the government’s lack of long-term planning to maintain such a strategic route as Pantura.
Sooner or later this same old story must end. For a vital road like Pantura, where the movement of goods and people takes place 24 hours a day, any congestion will cause havoc to the economy. ●
Joining the Idul Fitri exodus has become an annual ritual for my family of four, who are just part of an estimated 24 million people leaving their places of residence for their respective hometowns across the country. According to the Transportation Ministry, the number of homeward bound holiday travelers this year will increase by 8.6 percent from last year.
For those who are cramming Java’s roads on public buses and private cars, the struggle to reach home reads like the same old story. So does the major repair of the Java north costal highway (Pantura) ahead of Idul Fitri.
As far as I can remember, the fastest travel time from Jakarta to my hometown Semarang during Idul Fitri was seven hours in 2002. I can still recall the relatively clear traffic and smooth roads along Pantura when we completed the 480 kilometer route.
Unfortunately since that year, the busy highway has been unable to accommodate the fast growing number of vehicles carrying holiday makers. The year 2006 was a nightmare for my family as it took us 26 hours to reach Semarang.
The overcrowded Pantura route has been worsening each year, but the homecoming journey resembles a bad habit that you could never quit. Whenever I told my friends that we would leave for Semarang by car ahead of Idul Fitri, they shouted at me in disbelief. “You’ve never learned anything, haven’t you?”
For some holidaymakers, it is much more practical to just book a flight. However, soaring air fares reaching up to 100 percent during the Idul Fitri season has deterred people from travelling by air according to the Indonesia Air Ticketing Companies Association (Astindo).
Despite the hike, the number of air travelers is set to increase to over 3.75 million this year, according to the Transportation Ministry, up by 11.7 percent from the 2012 mark. Some domestic carriers already announced plans to provide extra seats to meet the rising demand.
Train tickets have always been sold out one month before Idul Fitri as the state railway operator PT KAI allows passengers to buy ticket three months ahead of the designated departure date.
Many refuse to take buses or trains in order to save money, but maybe not their lives, as they prefer motorcycles. Despite the government’s request for travelers to switch to public transportation and free rides provided by government agencies and private companies, the number of holiday makers who will travel by motorcycle is estimated to increase by 35 percent this year.
Safety does not count for the daredevil riders, although the police say that 70 percent of over 4,300 road accidents during Idul Fitri last year involved motorcycles. Unfortunately, it is not easy for the police to give them tickets or ban them from continuing their journeys. The only thing the police can do is make sure that the motorcyclists ride on the safe lane, although a lot of them ignore the traffic rules.
The government’s decision to raise fuel prices recently is predicted to encourage more people to ride their motorbikes for their holiday exodus. It is estimated that the number of motorcyclists is likely to rise by 35 percent compared to last year.
However, road users are still facing another stumbling block: the poor conditions in some sections of the Pantura highway. Public Works Minister Djoko Kirmanto has stated that the country’s busiest national road network is in good shape and major problems such as pot holes and uneven roads between Merak and Surabaya have been repaired.
The minister explained that 229 out of 1,316 kilometers of the road had been constructed with rigid surfacing instead of asphalt and another 106 km with high quality asphalt to handle the traffic better. The ministry has predicted that the average daily traffic would increase by 6 percent to 46,640 vehicles during the exodus. Around 70 percent of 11.5 million vehicles traveling in this year’s Idul Fitri holiday would pass through the highway, according to data from the Transportation Ministry.
Djoko added that the ministry had spent 40 percent of the Rp 1.28 trillion (US$124.16 million) allocated for repair work this year, which was carried out every year ahead of Idul Fitri. He also said that three overpass projects – in Semarang, Central Java; Jombor in Yogyakarta and Peterongan in Jombang, East Java – worth Rp 309 billion along the highway had been finished.
The repeated Pantura repair works has prompted the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) to consider an investigation. BPK chairman Hadi Poernomo said that the focus of the investigation was on why the road needed repairs every year and vehicle tonnage regulations, among other things. The Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) is also verifying reports filed by the public concerning alleged corruption in the Pantura roadwork projects.
Although, even if corruption is absent, the annual repair work only indicates the government’s lack of long-term planning to maintain such a strategic route as Pantura.
Sooner or later this same old story must end. For a vital road like Pantura, where the movement of goods and people takes place 24 hours a day, any congestion will cause havoc to the economy. ●
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