In the Sudirman and M.H. Thamrin areas, many hotels serve as wedding venues on the weekends, he pointed out here on Saturday.
“In principle, I do not want the car-free night to disrupt the operations of hotels that receive guests for wedding events that usually end around 10 p.m.,” the governor said.
Therefore, the Jakarta provincial government is continuing to coordinate with various parties to ensure the program runs smoothly, without sacrificing other public interests.
The car-free night was initially planned to be trialled on Saturday night (July 5) with the Jakarta Muharram Festival 2025, which featured a torchlight parade.
However, the Jakarta government cancelled the festival as well as the car-free night trial, which was originally planned for the M.H. Thamrin and Sudirman areas, citing concerns over disruption to traffic and people’s activities.
“After considering various things, the Jakarta government has decided to encourage a community-level commemoration and cancel the 2025 Jakarta Muharram Festival,” Jakarta governor’s special staff member for public communication, Cyril Raoul Hakim, said in Jakarta on Friday.
He emphasized that despite the cancellation, the provincial government of Jakarta is encouraging community-level commemoration events to welcome Muharram, the first month of the Islamic calendar, together with local government agencies.
Translator: Siti Nurhaliza, Raka Adji
Editor: Aditya Eko Sigit Wicaksono
Copyright © ANTARA 2025
