Indonesia's Ministry of Transportation Tackles Year-End Traffic at Ketapang Port

Infrastructure and Capacity Challenges

The Ministry of Transportation is working on comprehensive measures to address the persistent vehicle queues at Ketapang Port, a critical transportation hub connecting Java and Bali. The port experiences extremely high traffic during national holidays and long weekends. According to Sigit Widodo, Director of Facilities, Infrastructure, and River, Lake, and Ferry Transportation, the current infrastructure includes four Movable Bridge docks, one Ponton dock, and three Landing Craft Machine docks.

Causes of Congestion

The congestion at Ketapang Port is attributed to the significant surge in demand that outpaces the available transport capacity and infrastructure. Widodo emphasized that while the existing facilities are in place, they are insufficient to handle peak traffic, resulting in lengthy queues and wait times. This situation not only affects passenger travel but also has a significant impact on logistics distribution.

Strategic Interventions

In response to these challenges, the Ministry is developing a multi-faceted strategy to improve the situation at Ketapang Port. The plan likely includes optimizing existing infrastructure, potentially increasing operational hours, and exploring additional capacity measures to better manage the high traffic volumes during peak periods.