Jakarta: Millions of Indonesians were stuck for hours in traffic jams on Wednesday as they traveled back to their hometowns to celebrate Eid Al-Fitr with their families.
Nearly 144 million people, about half of the Indonesian population, are expected to travel for the holiday that marks the end of Ramadan this year, according to a government survey.
Indonesian authorities are expecting nearly 22 million people to hit the roads on Wednesday alone, with traffic jams of up to 15 km forming on Java’s highways by the morning, including on the Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Skyway and the Jakarta-Cikampek toll road, which links the Greater Jakarta area with cities in the province of West Java.
“The number of people leaving the Greater Jakarta area continues to increase ahead of the Eid Al-Fitr holiday,” Rivan A. Purwantono, president director of Indonesian toll-road operator Jasa Marga, said in a statement.
“Road users should anticipate surges in traffic volume and carefully plan their trips.”
