Palembang, KOTABARI.COM – The Palembang-Betung highway has once again become the center of attention due to the heavy influx of mudik (annual exodus) vehicles coming from both Palembang and Betung directions. Traffic congestion began to appear since midday and worsened towards the evening.
Observations at Simpang Y KM 14 towards Betung show a continuous increase in vehicles coming from Palembang direction. The congestion has even extended up to KM 13, causing difficulties in traffic flow.
In addition to mudik vehicles, long-distance buses (AKAP) are also seen heading towards Betung, further exacerbating the congestion as heavy-tonnage vehicles are still allowed to pass.
“Congestion has been occurring since 14.00, and it has been getting dense. It wasn’t like this a few days ago, it started getting long traffic jams since yesterday,” said Rosik, a tire patcher at KM 14.
Apart from the high mudik traffic, congestion is also caused by the actions of some self-appointed traffic controllers (locally known as ‘pak ogah’) at congestion-prone points. These individuals, located in front of SPBU KM 16, Simpang Pasir Putih, Simpang Semuntul, and Simpang Air Batu, often prioritize vehicles exiting the road as they are given money.
Congestion not only occurs from Palembang to Betung but also in the opposite direction. The continuous flow of vehicles in and out of congestion-prone points further exacerbates the situation.
Although congestion usually occurs towards late afternoon or evening, this time it began as early as midday. The cause is the increase in the number of mudik vehicles.
Meanwhile, on the other side, the Kapal Betung toll road is scheduled to be operational for private vehicles or mudik vehicles from both directions on April 5th. This is expected to alleviate the congestion on the Palembang-Betung route to some extent.