Pelindo Regional 4 Passenger Traffic Up 12.9% Year-on-Year Through August
Pelindo Regional 4 says passenger traffic across its eastern Indonesian ports reached 6.02 million people between January and August 2026, a 12.9 percent year-on-year increase.
By Pandi Muktar
Editor: Mursyid Sonsang
· Event date: · 3 min read
Makassar — — Passenger traffic across the ports managed by PT Pelabuhan Indonesia (Persero) Regional 4 reached 6.02 million people between January and August 2026, up 12.9 percent from 5.33 million in the same period of 2025, according to a company statement and local media reports.
The increase reflects traffic handled by Regional 4, which oversees a network of ports in eastern Indonesia rather than the company’s nationwide operations.
Regional 4’s announcement, dated 17 September 2026 and published via the company website, said passenger flows were one of the main contributors to operational growth in the first eight months of the year.
Local coverage citing the same Regional 4 data reported that total passenger traffic rose from 5.33 million people in January–August 2025 to 6.02 million people in January–August 2026, a year-on-year gain of 12.9 percent.
According to these reports, the Makassar branch alone handled around 739,788 passengers over the period, while several other ports under Regional 4 also posted increases.
Regional coverage and key ports
Regional 4 is responsible for a cluster of ports in eastern Indonesia, including major gateways such as Makassar, Kendari, Parepare, Manado and Ambon, according to earlier statements by the company and industry media.
Media citing Regional 4 data on the January–August 2026 performance noted that Kendari booked the highest growth in passenger traffic, followed by Parepare, Makassar, Manado and Ambon.
These ports form part of the operating base for Regional 4’s passenger services, linking urban centres and island communities across Sulawesi, Maluku and surrounding waters.
The published figures, however, do not include a full list of all ports counted in the 6.02 million passenger total.
Implications for eastern Indonesia travel
The 12.9 percent rise indicates stronger aggregate demand for passenger transport through Regional 4’s ports compared with the same period a year earlier.
Company statements and media reports attribute the higher traffic to overall growth in operational indicators, but they do not break down the effect by route, vessel type or travel purpose.
For travellers using eastern Indonesian gateways, the available information confirms increased movement through major ports such as Makassar and Kendari, which serve as hubs for inter-island sea travel.
The data does not specify whether traffic through Labuan Bajo or other ports in East Nusa Tenggara was included in the Regional 4 calculation, and Regional 4’s published announcement does not list those ports among its highlighted branches.
Data points from Pelindo Regional 4
- Reporting unit: PT Pelabuhan Indonesia (Persero) Regional 4
- Coverage period: January–August 2026, compared with January–August 2025
- Reported passenger total January–August 2025: 5.33 million people
- Reported passenger total January–August 2026: 6.02 million people
- Reported change: 12.9 percent year-on-year increase in passenger traffic
- Makassar branch traffic January–August 2026: about 739,788 passengers
Regional 4’s announcement focuses on aggregate operational performance and does not publish a detailed methodology or port-by-port table for the passenger figures.
Without that breakdown, the 12.9 percent increase is best understood as a regional indicator of traffic through the main eastern Indonesian ports under Regional 4’s management, rather than a direct measure of passenger demand at any single gateway.
Sources
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