Merak Port Crowded With Queues For Vehicles Affected By Bad Weather

The executive jetty of Merak port is crowded with vehicles bound for Bakauheni Port, Lampung due to bad weather in the waters of the northern Sunda Strait.ANTARA/Mansyur

JAKARTA - Merak Port in Cilegon, Banten, is crowded with queues of vehicles at all piers from Friday (8/3) to Saturday (9/3) night due to bad weather in the waters of the northern Sunda Strait.

Corporate Secretary of PT ASDP Indonesia Ferry (Persero), Shelvy Arifin said the vehicle density was due to extreme weather in the Sunda Strait in the last 3 days which had an impact on crossing services being hampered.

The BMKG issued a level 2-3 warning because the weather had not improved with wind speeds of 20 - 25 knots and wave heights reaching 2.5 meters.

Based on weather reports as of Saturday (9/3) at 19.00 WIB, both at Merak and Bakauheni ports there was light rain with moderate waves.

In connection with these conditions, ASDP together with BPTD as the regulator, TNI/Polri, and KSKP, Gapasdap and INFA partners, carried out a cotingency plan to break down vehicle queues due to extreme weather.

Several agreements include optimizing the operation of ships at each dock prioritizing ships with large capacities (GRT).

For Pier 1 of the 4 ships will be added 1 unit of ship with a total of 5 large ships.

The agreement will be implemented at the first opportunity so that the queues can be decomposed immediately.

Then for the convenience of Merak-Bakauheni crossing service users, to arrange the best possible journey, and to remain aware of the current extreme weather conditions.

All service users must have a ticket before arriving at Merak Port with a maximum limit of online ticket purchase radius at Pesona Merak Hotel.

With the condition of Force Majeur, management stipulates that the validity period of the ticket will receive special treatment, but passengers are asked to continue to ensure that the tickets they have are in accordance with the identity of the passenger and vehicle. ASDP will only receive tickets according to passenger data and their vehicles.

ASDP apologizes to all service users and the surrounding community for the inconvenience caused by the situation.

Management continues to strive to prioritize the safety of passengers, crew, and port facilities for the smooth running and convenience of crossings.

In addition, we urge the public to remain aware of the potential for bad weather that occurs, especially on the busiest Merak-Bakauheni track.