Children's Krakatau Activity Increases, Merak-Bakauheni Crossing Needs Serious Attention When Homecoming

Hundreds of private vehicles that will cross to Sumatra Island are stuck in traffic at Merak Harbor, Banten, Wednesday (27/4/2022). BETWEEN PHOTOS/Asep Fathulrahman/YU.

JAKARTA - Member of Commission V DPR RI Sigit Sosiantomo assesses the Merak-Bakauheni crossing needs serious attention during the 2022 Lebaran homecoming period.

"The BMKG has issued a warning about the increasing eruptive activity of Mount Anak Krakatau. And this has the potential to have an impact on the smoothness and safety of the Merak-Bakauheni crossing," said Sigit Sosiantomo in a statement in Jakarta, quoted by Antara, Thursday, April 28.

Serious attention, he said, the thing that needs to be anticipated is not only about congestion due to the density of travelers, but also preparedness to face potential disasters in the event of an eruption of Mount Anak Krakatau.

Sigit also asked the public and travelers to be aware of the potential for disasters at night due to the eruption of Anak Krakatau. Sigit recommends travelers to cross during the day. Meanwhile, to overcome congestion in Bakauheni, Sigit hopes that the Ministry of Transportation (Kemenhub) and ASDP coordinate to discuss the possibility of increasing the crossing schedule by adding to the fleet of ferries that serve crossings in the Sunda Strait. The number of vessels operated by PT ASDP Indonesia Ferry Merak Branch is 27 of the 68 vessels that are on standby, an increase of 17 percent from 2019. Meanwhile, on Tuesday alone travelers with private vehicles have increased by more than 42 percent," he said. the queue to get the boat to cross will be long and congested. "Tickets for this Thursday are already sold out and only available for the next day. Therefore, this must be a concern," said Sigit.