Many Challenges Remain, Car Free Night Trial Canceled

KatadataOTO – The trial for the Car Free Night and the torch parade of the Jakarta Muharram Festival 2025, which was supposed to be held in the M.H. Thamrin and Jendral Sudirman areas on Saturday (05/07) night, has been canceled.

This is certainly unfortunate because the event was previously expected to attract a lot of public attention.

"After considering various factors, the DKI Provincial Government has decided to encourage commemorations at the community level and cancel the Jakarta Muharram Festival 2025," said Cyril Raoul Hakim, Special Staff for Public Communication to the Governor of DKI Jakarta, as reported by Antara (04/07).

Initially, the Car Free Night trial and the Jakarta Muharram Festival 2025 torch parade were scheduled to be held from 18:00 to 22:00 WIB. The route was from the Southwest Gate of Monas Square to the Hotel Indonesia (HI) Roundabout via the Bank Indonesia Roundabout and MH Thamrin street.

Photo : Antara

However, after considering the flow of traffic as well as the routine evening and night activities of residents, the DKI Provincial Government canceled the event.

"We greatly appreciate the enthusiasm of the residents and the hard work of the committee. This was certainly not an easy decision," said Chico.

Nevertheless, he confirmed that on the following day, Sunday (06/07), the event that had been prepared will still be held during Car Free Day.

The event, themed "Jakarta in Color" at the HI Roundabout, Central Jakarta, will start from 06:00-10:00 WIB, featuring 5,000 martial artists and 2,000 traditional Jakarta dancers.

It was previously reported that the Car Free Night trial would be held on Saturday (05/07) at 19:00 WIB. If successful, it is possible that similar events will be held regularly again.

Photo : NTMC Polri

Car Free Night itself is believed to meet the needs of residents who want to exercise at night. However, they acknowledged that the event requires further study as it impacts community mobility on weekends.

This is because if it is done carelessly, it is possible that community mobility could be disrupted and harm many parties.