Brilio.net/en - Indonesia is a big developing economy with a growing consumer class and a ton of cheap airlines, so its no surprise that more and more Mudik travelers are taking to the skies.
The Transport Ministry 5.8 million people took to the skies for the period in 2016, easily overtaking and outstripping those traveling by train (4.5 million), public vehicle (4.3 million) and sea (3.5 million).
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For those who dont know, Mudik is the annual exodus when Indonesian cities empty as people head back to their hometowns (pulang kampung) en masse to celebrate the Idul Fitri holiday that marks the end of Ramadan
This temporary migration has been part of Indonesian culture for generations, but recently its become more known for the epic traffic jams created by all those cars heading out. Most Indonesians are still taking road vehicles one way or another for the trip.
Media reports this year said 12 people died from the heat while stuck in a tailback for 12 hours (the transport minister disputes this claim). The jam was at the Brebes, Central Java toll exit for the Pantura highway, which runs along Javas northern coast and always gets rammed. Due to the media attention, some have dubbed the Brebes exit - Brexit.
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As more and more vehicles on the roads have led to more and more traffic hell, more and more people are taking planes to avoid the crush altogether.
Indonesias Transport Minister Ignasius Jonan had predicted, for the first time in the history of Idul Fitri transport operations in Indonesia, the number of passengers traveling by air would outstrip those traveling by road.
"This is a new phenomenon that the number of air passengers is the highest, compared to other modes of transportation," Jonan said in a discussion with media at a recent press conference in Jakarta before final data was released.
The ministry had expected numbers to rise, but their projections fell well short of the eventual total. It predicted a 7.6 percent increase to slightly over 4.6 million passengers.
Minister Ignasius said the development of capacity and services at airports and better performance by staff had attracted more customers.