Workers coat concrete at the Surabaya-Mojokerto toll road, Friday (9/6). Coating concrete is one of the requirements for toll roads to be used for the 2017 Idul Fitri exodus.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS — Motorcycle riders are most at risk of accidents during the annual homecoming tradition ahead of Idul Fitri or Lebaran holidays within the next two weeks.
The risk of accidents is rising at this time because of the increasing number of motorcycles with engine capacities of more than 125 cc. They are generally faster than those with lower engine capacities.
Based on data from the police traffic corps (Korlantas), the number of accidents during the mass exodus in Lebaran last year was 2,719 with 504 deaths. More than 80 percent of the deaths were caused by motorcycle accidents.
"Motorcycles should not be used for long-haul travel because it tends to make the driver lose concentration and prone to accidents," said Korlantas chief Insp. Gen. Royke Lumowa.
According to Royke, the police cannot prohibit people from riding motorcycles to travel to their hometowns because it is not regulated by the law. However, the police will try to reduce the number of accidents from those in 2016.
"The police will ticket and remove the passengers of the motorcycle if the number is more than two," he said.
The police will also routinely urge motorcyclists to stop at rest areas. Motorcyclists should rest every two hours so as not to lose concentration, which can trigger an accident.
Djoko Setijowarno, transportation observer from the Indonesian Transportation Society said, with a large engine capacity, motorcyclists tend to go faster.
"When speed exceeds 60 kilometers per hour, the risk of accidents is higher. Especially, if the rider is tired, " Djoko said in Jakarta Friday.
Djoko said victims of motorcycle accidents were not only adults, but also children. A motorcycle often carries more than two people, thus increasing the risk of accidents
Prone areas
The chief of the Central Java Police, Insp. Gen. Condro Kirono, said there were 44 locations with a high risk of traffic accidents on the regular route of the northern coastal highway (Pantura), 27 locations in the middle route, and 10 locations on the southern route.
On the Pantura highway, the most accident-prone areas are in Pemalang and Rembang, each with nine locations, as well as in Kudus with four locations.
"The risk of accidents is higher on the Pantura highway. The traffic flow in the area is heavy and there is a lack of lighting," Condro added.
After the Idul Fitri holidays, he said, the risk of accidents would turn to tourist destinations, especially those located in the highlands, such as Bandungan in Semarang, Tawangmangu in Karanganyar and Guci in Tegal.
Cars often have accidents in mountainous tourist areas. People should, therefore, travel on a roadworthy vehicle.
In Cilegon, Banten, there are 17 accident-prone locations located within the Cilegon Police area. In the area there are a number of lanes of homecoming and tourist travel.
The locations are Cikuasa Atas, Karang Bolong, Cikoneng, Bandulu and Samangraya. Some locations are also located at the intersections such as Pondok Cilegon Indah, East Cilegon, Gerem and Teneng.
In East Java, travelers are required to be careful when passing through intersections on the highways. About 198 kilometers along the Surabaya-Mantingan highway, there are 42 intersections.
In the Special Region of Yogyakarta, police will stick “janur kuning” (yellow coconut leaves) on undisciplined riders as a form of warning.
"The ‘janur kuning’ movement is an educative approach for motorcyclists who violate the rules. We will put ’janur kuning’ on the front and rear of the motorcycles they drive," the director of the traffic department of the Yogyakarta police, Commr. Latif Usman said.
