People Told to Avoid Outdoor Activities

The government has asked the public to stay at home on New Year’s Eve. In addition to closing a number of public places, a traffic restriction will be imposed on a number of major roads to prevent crowds.

KOMPAS/RONY ARIYANTO NUGROHO

Traffic density of the Inner City Toll Road on Jalan Gatot Subroto, Jakarta, during work hours, Thursday (30/12/2021). The heavy traffic illustrates that the daily activities of residents in Jakarta are still loose when the Omicron wave rises.

CIREBON, KOMPAS — The government has asked the public to stay at home on New Year’s Eve on Friday (12/31/2021) in order to help curb the spread of Covid-19, especially the recently detected Omicron variant, which is far more contagious than previous coronavirus variants. In addition to closing a number of public places, a traffic restriction will be imposed on a number of major roads to prevent crowds.

During a coordination meeting on preparing transportation control measures for New Year’s at the Cirebon Police station in West Java, Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi called the public to be vigilant against the spread of the new Covid-19 variant, Omicron, over the year-end holidays, in line with the directive of President Joko Widodo.

The ministry and related agencies would therefore be imposing a traffic restriction on toll roads in order to prevent a surge in vehicular flow and prevent crowds at rest areas and tourist destinations.

"If there is no urgent need to travel, it's better to just stay at home," said Budi Karya.

Also read:

> Omicron Cases Increase, Children at Risk

> Indonesia Vigilant Over Omicron

KOMPAS/RIZA FATHONI

Police officers direct bus passengers passing on Jalan Raya Rengas Bandung, East Cikarang, Bekasi Regency, West Java to undergo an on-site inspection of vaccine and vaccine certificates as well as a random antigen test, Monday (27/12/2021).

The vehicle registration and identification director (Regident Korlantas) at National Police Headquarters, Brig. Gen. Yusri Yunus, said that more than 1.6 million vehicles had left Jakarta using toll roads in the last two weeks. The volume of vehicular traffic on the capital city’s toll roads was expected to peak from Friday (12/31/2021) to Sunday (2/1/2022).

At least 177,000 police officers are to be deployed to man more than 1,850 checkpoints and 700 service centers over New Year’s. In addition to regulating traffic flow and maintaining security, the officers will also ensure that travelers are complying with health protocols.

Also read:

> Omicron Caseload Increases

> Vigilance for Omicron Variant Heightened

Closing

The Jakarta Metropolitan Police have confirmed that they would conduct a crowd-free operation at 11 locations in the capital, including Jl. Jenderal Sudirman and Jl. M.H. Thamrin, from 31 Dec. 2021 to Jan. 1 2022. Meanwhile, malls and restaurants would only be allowed to remain open until 10 p.m.

A number of public places that usually draw crowds have also been closed in other big cities in the country, such as Manado (North Sulawesi), Jayapura (Papua), and Surabaya (East Java).

In addition, a traffic restriction policy has also been imposed on the main roads to tourist destinations, such as Puncak in Bogor, West Java, and Malang, East Java. (IKI/ERK/DAN/HLN/OKA/IDO/WER/DAN/FLO)

This article was translated by Hendarsyah Tarmizi.