Facing The Surge In Nataru Passengers, ASDP Strengthens The Punggur-Tanjung Uban Telaga Crossing

JAKARTA - Towards the Christmas 2025 and New Year 2026 (Nataru) periods, PT ASDP Indonesia Ferry (Persero) strengthens operations on one of the busiest routes in Riau Province, namely Telaga Punggur-Tanjung Uban.

The mobilization of passengers and vehicles on that route is projected to grow by 15 percent, reaching 101,110 passengers and 32,307 vehicles, or a significant increase compared to Nataru last year.

ASDP President Director, Heru Widodo, emphasized that the increase in travel demand must be accompanied by the readiness of services at all points.

Riau is one of the areas with high mobility. Our focus is on ensuring safe, smooth, and comfortable crossings through the readiness of an integrated fleet, operation arrangements, and digital support," Heru said in an official statement, Wednesday, November 19.

In terms of operations, General Manager of ASDP Batam Branch, Andri Setiawan explained that various anticipatory steps have been prepared to face the peak of density, both in Telaga Punggur and Tanjung Uban.

The move includes vehicle screening at the main gate, priority for small and two-wheeled vehicles, added counter counter counter counter counter counter counter counters, as well as proposals for adjustment of operating patterns and additional up to three trips on days with the highest vehicle projections.

"In normal conditions, operations are carried out as many as 13 trips using KMP Barau and KMP Tanjung Burang. On crowded days, this additional trip is important to reduce barriers and accelerate vehicle flow," explained Andri.

In addition, ASDP has also alerted various supporting facilities, such as ambulances, firefighters, rubber boats, tug boats, and online ticket services.

Andri added that services at Telaga Punggur are further enhanced through the virtual launch of a customer service called Hay!Dara. The service operates 24 hours and allows service users to connect directly with service agents via video calls.

"So that the delivery of information, handling complaints, and various other needs for assistance can be done more quickly, easily, and efficiently," he explained.

Strengthening Pioneer Services

The Minister of Transportation, Dudy Purwagandhi, added that the readiness of crossing services has a direct impact on community connectivity, especially in the archipelago.

"Strengthening modern services and using ships provides certainty of travel time, comfort, and much better safety for the community," he said.

As part of the mission to expand sea transportation access, ASDP also operates the pioneering ship KMP Bahtera Nusantara 01 to serve the long Tanjung Uban-Letung-Matak-Midai-Sedanau-Penagi-Subi-Serasan-Sinte route.

Layanan perintis ini merupakan komitmen perusahaan dalam menghadirkan mobilitas yang inklusif bagi masyarakat kepulauan.

“Kami berupaya menyediakan akses transportasi yang adil, tidak hanya di pusat pertumbuhan ekonomi tetapi juga di daerah terpencil yang sangat membutuhkan konektivitas untuk berkembang,” kata Heru.

Dudy menjabarkan dampak positif rute baru tersebut. Kata dia, sebelumnya masyarakat harus menempuh perjalanan jauh dengan kapal tradisional.

Kini, rute Tanjung Uban–Letung sejauh 283 km dapat ditempuh sekitar 15 jam, sementara Letung–Matak sekitar 5 jam dengan kapal berkapasitas 1.500 GT tersebut.

“Kapal ini mampu mengangkut hingga 296 penumpang dan 26 kendaraan,” tuturnya.

This pioneering service is the company's commitment to providing inclusive mobility for the island community.

"We are trying to provide fair access to transportation, not only at the center of economic growth but also in remote areas that really need connectivity to develop," said Heru.

Dudy explained the positive impact of the new route. He said, previously people had to travel long distances by traditional ships.

Now, the Tanjung Uban route with a length of 283 km can be reached for about 15 hours, while the Mataak Letung is about 5 hours by ship with a capacity of 1,500 GT.

"This ship is capable of carrying up to 296 passengers and 26 vehicles," he said.