Tourist Flow Causes Congestion on the Semarang Route

VIVA – The Eid al-Fitr holiday will end. So, many people take advantage of this time to go to tourist attractions. On Saturday, May 7 2022, the surrounding area of Semarang City was visited by many tourists.

As a result, arterial routes leading to tourist destinations are observed to be very congested. This density also causes congestion that occurs on the route out of town to Ungaran and Salatiga.

Congestion occurs on the route out of town to Ungaran and Salatiga, which are people's favorite destinations, so the queue of vehicles extends for up to 6 kilometers. The build-up of traffic flow was triggered by the sharp increase in the volume of vehicles.

Thousands of residents take advantage of the two days of Eid al-Fitr holidays on Saturday and Sunday to visit the tourist spot before going to work and school on the Monday the day after tomorrow.

From observations in the field, the starting point of the density starts from the intersection of Ungaran Old Town Square. Then it extends to the Bandarjo market because many people cross.

The traffic jam continues to extend to the boundary gate of Semarang City with Ungaran. The length of the queue was monitored until the front of Makodam IV Diponegoro, Watugong Banyumanik. The total flow of queue vehicles is about 6 kilometers long.

Drivers can only drive the vehicle very slowly between five to ten kilometers per hour.

Meanwhile, motorcyclists must maneuver in the side lane so as not to get caught in the traffic jam.

One of the drivers said that he was going on a trip to Ungaran. This is because on Monday, May 9, 2022 it is time to go to work and school.

"The traffic jam was from Kodam. Yes, you have to be able to go through the traffic jams so you can get out of the traffic jam," said Mustofa, a motorcycle rider.

"Tomorrow, Monday, the children will go to school. So, while it is still a holiday, I invite my kids to go on a trip to Watu Gunung," said Novi, Mustofa's wife.

The congestion is predicted to happen until afternoon. Meanwhile, in the evening, traffic jams are predicted to occur in the opposite direction, when residents start returning from vacation and meet the return flow of Eid.

Previously, the Central Java Transportation Departement had predicted that when the Eid al-Fitr holiday period would end, there would be traffic jams on the tourist route. So, the Central Java Transportation Department has coordinated with the police regarding traffic flow regulation.