The police's Public Relations Division Head Inspector General Sandi Nugroho stated here, Wednesday, that experiences during the Eid exodus last year are being considered in this year's strategy.
"At present, we are cooperating with (toll road operator) Jasamarga to install vehicle counting device at every toll gate," Nugroho remarked.
The counting device will assist on-duty officers to determine traffic management strategies on various roads by calculating potential congestion from vehicles on toll roads, he stated.
Nugroho explained that contraflow on toll roads would occur gradually, starting from one-lane contraflow when 5,500 vehicles are detected on the toll road and then increasing to two lanes and until the six thousand-vehicle threshold is passed and up to three lanes when it reaches seven thousand.
Related news: Police Traffic Corps to ensure bikers' safety during Eid exodus
The police will redirect vehicles to alternative routes or set up other traffic control strategies if the contraflow fails to prevent congestion, he remarked.
The inspector general highlighted that traffic management to prevent congestion during Eid al-Fitr would take place not only on toll roads but also on other main roads on the exodus routes.
Nugroho remarked that traffic management measures also aim to prevent the recurrence of the 2016 traffic jam caused by the bottleneck at the Brebes toll gate in Central Java where dozens of travellers died while waiting for their cars to exit the toll gate.
Earlier, the transportation ministry estimated that some 123.8 million residents would return to their hometowns during this year's Eid exodus, an increase from 85 million in 2022.
Of the total projected travellers this year, 99.22 million residents are expected to travel by land, including 27.32 million residents using private cars and 22.77 million residents in buses.
Related news: Police to apply traffic engineering during Eid exodus
Related news: East Java prepares 161 free buses for Eid exodus
Translator: Laily Rahmawaty, Nabil Ihsan
Editor: Yuni Arisandy Sinaga
Copyright © ANTARA 2023
