Starting on Thursday, truck cannot pass on artery and protocol roads

The Jakarta Provincial Government is prohibiting goods public transports or trucks pass through the artery and protocol roads on 4 days before Eid ul Fitr in the capital. The policy aims to anticipate traffic congestion during homecoming season.

According to Muhammad Akbar, Head of Jakarta Transportation Department, the policy will impose over seven days, starting from 4 days before until 1 day after Eid ul Fitr. Actually, it has been imposed in previous years. "Starting on Thursday, truck cannot pass on artery and protocol roads," he told, Tuesday (7/22).

He uttered such policy is not imposed to vehicles carrying fuel, cattle, staple food, fertilizer, milk, and postal delivery of goods. This is because, if the trucks carrying staple food are prohibited to pass the road, it would cause food scarcity. As a result, price hike would happen and disrupt the economic stability of the city. This policy has been disseminated to employers thus the goods mobilization expected to have done in the far-away days earlier.

"This is because we prioritize buses carrying passenger during homecoming season, thus truck can mobilize goods in the far-away days earlier," he told.

The prohibition also imposes to container trucks carrying exports and imports goods from and to the port and vice versa, except they have approval or dispensation from Head of Jakarta Transportation Department.

For surveillance, his department cooperates with the police. If there is a vehicle in violation, it will be ticketed. "We will give sanction to those violate the rules," he asserted.

Akbar added, the policy will be implemented for 24 hours. Besides Jakarta, similar thing would be conducted all over Indonesia. It is strengthened by Transportation Ministry's Decree which aims to anticipate congestion.