"Thank God, we have been able to close the coordination post today. Thank God, we can carry out the directives from the President (Joko Widodo) to realize a safe and memorable homecoming,” he said at the Transportation Ministry’s headquarters here on Tuesday.
The coordination post was established at the ministry’s headquarters and tasked with monitoring the movement of Eid travelers at 111 bus stations, 18 crossing ports, 51 airports, 110 seaports, 13 railway operation areas/regional divisions, 42 toll gates, and 20 arterial roads.
The Islamic holy day was announced to fall on April 22 this year, and the government set the joint leave period from April 19 to 25.
The minister said that the implementation of the 2023 Eid al-Fitr homecoming did not encounter significant obstacles.
Still, a number of aspects need to be evaluated so that the homecoming handling can be improved next year, he added.
"…certainly, we have to prioritize (travelers’) safety and improve the infrastructure," he emphasized.
His ministry has proposed to the Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Ministry that the number of lanes of Cikopo-Palimanan (Cipali) Toll Road be added to three lanes.
"…because if there are three lanes (in each direction), perhaps we can carry out a contraflow traffic scheme, instead of a one-way traffic scheme," Sumadi explained.
In addition, he said that he expected ferry operators, airlines, and train operators to improve the capacity and number of their fleets.
The Director General of Land Transportation of the Transportation Ministry, Hendro Sugiatno, informed that the volume of traffic on toll roads during the 2023 Eid homecoming period reached 1,918,958 vehicles, up 5.6 percent compared to the same period last year.
Furthermore, his ministry recorded that the volume of traffic on toll roads reached 2,065,831 vehicles during the return period, an increase of 6.5 percent compared to the corresponding period in the previous year.
Related news: Eid al-Fitr celebration and the hopes of economic recovery
Related news: Flight traffic for 2023 Eid homecoming rises 20 percent: AirNav
Translator: Benardy Ferdiansyah, Uyu Liman
Editor: Anton Santoso
Copyright © ANTARA 2023
