Jakarta (ANTARA) - President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has urged travelers who plan to return home by sea during the Eid al-Fitr holidays to purchase their tickets online before arriving at the port of departure.

While monitoring sea transport arrangements for the Eid exodus at Merak Port in Banten on Tuesday, he emphasized that all passengers should already have their e-tickets in hand before entering the ferry crossing.

"I expect all passengers at the Merak Port to have purchased their ticket online because, as (we saw) last year, those who have not purchased their tickets can cause disruptions," Jokowi stated.

"Everyone must have their ticket before entering the Merak Port," he added.

Earlier, Minister of State-owned Enterprises Erick Thohir also urged travelers moving from Java to Sumatra by land to purchase their ferry crossing tickets online beforehand.

Failure to purchase tickets before arriving at the port could disrupt ferry transport, as passengers who need more time to buy their tickets after arriving at the port could block those who have already purchased their tickets.

"Crossings at Bakauheni and Merak are congested because passengers are not accustomed to using e-ticketing. The problem might arise when travelers are forcing their way despite not having the e-ticket. We need to anticipate this as well," the minister stated here on Monday (April 10).

He noted that online ticketing will allow residents to arrive later before departure, as the departure time will be printed on their e-tickets.

To prevent any ferry ticketing issues, the police's Traffic Corps will conduct random checks at several locations to ensure travelers have their ferry tickets in hand before arriving at Merak Port, Thohir said.

The Transportation Ministry also stated that travelers could purchase their ferry tickets through the Ferizy website or application up to 60 days before the departure day.

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Translator: Mentari Dwi G, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Anton Santoso
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