Bogor Police Traffic Unit Head, AKP R Rizky Guntama Ganda Permana, at the Gadog Police Post, Ciawi, Wednesday, said the closure was being carried out in stages to prepare for the implementation of a car-free night in the Puncak tourist area.
"The total closure will be implemented from 10:00 PM WIB to 1:00 AM WIB," he said.
He explained that there were three main sections that were closed during the car-free night, namely the Ciawi intersection toll road, the Ciawi route, and the Puncak route on the border of Bogor and Cianjur Regencies.
According to him, the closure began at 19.00 WIB at the Ciawi Toll Gate, followed by the closure of the Ciawi intersection at 20.00 WIB, before finally the total closure of the Puncak route was implemented at 22.00 WIB.
"At 10:00 PM WIB, the Puncak route was completely closed. No vehicles were allowed on or off until 1:00 AM WIB," he said.
He stated that security and roadblocks were carried out by around 200 joint personnel from the National Police, the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI), and local governments who were on standby at a number of roadblock points and alternative routes.
Officers will turn vehicles around and direct drivers to parking areas, including restaurants and tourist attractions that are still operating in the Puncak area.
"For emergencies, such as ambulances and fire engines, we will continue to prioritize them and escort them to the point of urgency or hospital," he said.
He predicted that a surge in traffic would occur on Thursday (1/1) with the dominant flow going down from Puncak towards Jakarta, so that one-way traffic engineering would be implemented.
The closure of the Puncak route, he continued, aims to provide space for tourists to celebrate New Year's Eve safely and orderly in the Puncak tourist area.
In addition, the Bogor Police also appealed to the public not to light fireworks as a form of empathy for disaster victims in several areas of Sumatra.
