Millions of Indonesian Muslims braved extensive traffic jams as they began the journey to their hometowns ahead of Eid al-Fitr on Wednesday.
Drone footage shot on Sunday showed thousands of vehicles queueing to board ferries at a seaport in Merak, some 100 km (62 miles) west of Jakarta, while long lines of vehicles stretched far outside.
Ferry passenger Setyo Febrian said it was easier to get tickets last year when commuters could buy same-day tickets on the spot, compared to this year where many faced issues with an online ticketing system.
“I think they should fix the (online) ticketing system and maybe add more ships and ports to reduce the queue,” said the 28 year-old Lampung province native.
“We departed from home last night around 9, and now it’s been 13 hours and we are still stuck in this horrific traffic. Hopefully, there will be a solution to this immediately,” said Aditya Nugraha, a 21-year-old Jakarta resident returning to the Sumatran province of Palembang.
Jakarta residents started leaving the capital from over the weekend through various modes of transportation, according to the transport ministry.
Around 193 million people across the nation were expected to travel during the weeklong holiday this year, about 56% higher compared to the same period last year, the ministry said.
(Source: Reuters)
