Christmas and New Year transportation engineering: Preventing export-import deficit
This article has been translated by PwC Indonesia as part of our Indonesia Infrastructure News Service. PwC Indonesia has not checked the accuracy of, and accepts no responsibility for the content.
Bisnis Indonesia - Rekayasa transportasi Nataru: Cegah tekor ekspor impor
9 December 2024
By Rahmad Fauzan & Anitana W. Puspa
Seasonal policies, such as transportation restrictions for certain vehicles at the end of the year, are seen as potentially obstructive to trade activities. Alas, the formulation of these prohibitions comes at a time when the economy needs a boost.
During every Christmas and New Year (Nataru) period, the government routinely imposes restrictions on the operation of three-axle trucks on several strategic routes. The same applies to Nataru 2024/2025.
Currently, the policy is being refined by the Ministry of Transportation, the Indonesian National Police (Polri), and other relevant institutions.
The issue, according to several businesses, is that the current economic conditions are still in a consolidation phase, necessitating an unconventional policy intervention.
Businesses perceive that trade activities, especially exports and imports, will suffer if the government insists on banning three-axle trucks.
The reason is that such a ban impacts shipping activities and the loading and unloading of logistics at ports, leading to increased logistics costs.
Business players interviewed by Bisnis suggest that the government should take into account the global shipping lines scheduled to arrive for loading and unloading exports at Indonesian ports.
Furthermore, exports are closely tied to liner schedules or closing times. Failing to meet these deadlines can severely impact exporters, leading to higher costs and making national products less competitive in the global market.
Moreover, this ban will lead to higher costs for the industry, as goods that were previously transported using one large truck will now need to be moved using multiple smaller trucks.
Unfortunately, based on a study by the Transportation Ministry accessed by Bisnis, the government has not yet decided whether there will be special measures for export and import activities.
One option under consideration is the utilisation of two-axle vehicles with a weight capacity of up to 16,999 kilograms, which are dimensionally similar to three-axle vehicles.
Benny Soetrisno, Chairman of the Indonesian Exporters Association (GPEI), mentioned that if the ban is implemented, the only option would be to bear extra costs for specific services.
Exporters are compelled to adopt this approach due to the strict scheduling of international logistics ships. This adjustment strategy also carries consequences, as businesses will incur extra costs to maintain full operations during the ban.
Benny further suggested that, ideally, the government should not impose a ban but instead grant conditional permissions. For instance, they could create a list of exporters who are granted permission, with security escorts from the authorities. Additionally, they could allow three-axle trucks to operate based on specific regional criteria.
“Vessels have specific closing dates and times. Therefore, three-axle trucks should not be prohibited,” he hoped.
Aligning with exporters, the Indonesian National Importers Association (GINSI) has urged the government to distinguish between traffic management approaches for the Nataru period and Eid al-Fitr. This is due to the fact that many companies remain operational during Nataru.
Subandi, the Chairman of GINSI, noted that traffic during the Nataru holidays is not as heavy as it is during the Eid al-Fitr homecoming period. He pointed out that the use of toll roads tend to be lighter during Nataru, which means that cargo movement is not affected by congestion.
Furthermore, factory operations remain largely unaffected since the number of workers celebrating Christmas is relatively small. “In fact, the toll roads are often empty during Nataru,” he remarked.
Logistics costs
He believes that if the government enforces the ban, businesses will inevitably incur higher logistics costs, including expenses for services such as security escorts and fees for managing port access.
Iman Gandi, the Secretary General of the Indonesian Logistics and Forwarders Association (ALFI), affirmed this point. He emphasised that the government should take a holistic approach when addressing the issue of truck bans to ensure that logistics activities are not compromised.
This is because if businesses have to switch to smaller trucks, distribution costs could increase by over 30%.
“A ban on operations, even for a few days, will affect the logistics costs that exporters and importers will have to shoulder,” he commented.
Moreover, this policy will also lead to increased inventory costs for manufacturers, as they will have to stockpile goods in all warehouses as a precaution against the truck operation ban.
He emphasised that the impact of these restrictions is experienced not only by exporters and importers but also by manufacturers, distributors, and traders.
Carmelita Hartoto, Chairwoman of the Indonesian National Shipowners Association (INSA), considers the increase in logistics costs resulting from the truck restriction policy to be inevitable.
Furthermore, she argued that the restriction on three-axle trucks could potentially disrupt logistics distribution, as businesses would be compelled to use more smaller trucks to transport goods.
Consequently, there may be delays in the distribution of goods, which could drive up market prices and, in turn, diminish consumer purchasing power.
She expressed that businesses hope for a review of this policy. “The government should focus on traffic management instead,” she proposed.
In response, Merijantij Punguan Pintaria, the Director of the Beverage, Tobacco Products, and Refreshment Materials Industry at the Ministry of Industry, hopes that industry players will prepare scenarios and take preventive measures to ensure that the ban does not disrupt business operations.
One strategy is to ramp up production and distribution ahead of the implementation of the three-axle truck ban. “It's crucial to decide when to ready products to satisfy market demand at the year’s end,” she remarked.
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Transportation has conducted evaluations and developed transportation recommendations in preparation for the 2024/2025 Nataru period.
However, the evaluations conducted so far have only addressed passenger transportation and have not yet covered freight transport.
Minister of Transportation, Dudy Purwagandhi, mentioned that the planned measures include anticipating traffic congestion, managing bottlenecks at transport hubs, addressing safety concerns, and preparing for changes in weather conditions.
“The Ministry of Transportation is taking strategic policy measures and developing disaster mitigation plans,” he said.
