Jakarta. Trucking businesses in Indonesia claim they are under mounting pressure from cargo owners to overload their vehicles or risk losing orders, despite the government's plans to crack down on overweight and oversized trucks --locally known as ODOL (overdimension overload)-- aimed at improving road safety and protecting infrastructure.

“If we tell clients our truck can only carry 10 tons, we get no jobs because others can haul 25 tons and beat us,” Gemilang Tarigan, chairman of the Indonesian Trucking Entrepreneurs Association (Aptrindo), told Beritasatu.com, The Jakarta Globe's sister publication, on Saturday..

Truckers often feel they have no choice but to exceed legal weight limits because cargo owners have come to expect it as a standard service, Gemilang said. The market has normalized overloading to the point where cargo owners threaten to take their business elsewhere if trucking firms comply with legal limits, he added.

This dilemma has deepened as the government under President Prabowo Subianto moves to strictly enforce the long-discussed ban on ODOL trucks, citing road damage and frequent accidents.

The Ministry of Public Works estimates ODOL-related infrastructure damage costs the state Rp 43.45 trillion (about $ 2.8 billion) annually, slashing road lifespan from 11 to just 3 years. ODOL vehicles account for 63 percent of freight traffic, especially on Trans-Sumatra and Trans-Java toll roads, and contribute to 17 percent of road accidents.

APTRINDO warns that unless regulations and infrastructure are updated to reflect current logistics needs, enforcement will unfairly penalize truckers caught between market pressures and the law. In many regions, outdated rules determine truck weight limits based on local road conditions, creating inconsistent standards for identical trucks operating across different provinces.

“It’s a structural problem. The laws are outdated, and we end up being squeezed between market demands and legal risks,” Gemilang said.

The association is urging the government to digitize enforcement through electronic documentation and tracking to reduce corruption and extortion on the roads, which have long plagued the sector due to direct interactions between drivers and traffic officers.

“Digital monitoring will allow enforcement without face-to-face contact, closing the door on illegal payments,” Gemilang said.

Truckers are also calling for a phased implementation of ODOL enforcement by commodity type, arguing that a blanket approach would spike logistics costs, especially for heavy but low-value goods like sand and building materials. These higher transport costs would eventually be passed on to consumers, potentially driving up prices across the board.

“Transporting sand under standard limits could double shipping costs, making it more expensive than the sand itself,” Gemilang said.

APTRINDO has asked the government to involve industry players in drafting an ODOL enforcement roadmap to prevent disruptions in the supply chain while ensuring fair and consistent regulations nationwide.

“The solution ultimately lies with the government. Only they can fix this system so businesses aren’t trapped between economic and legal pressures,” Gemilang said.

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