MTI urges people-centered transportation development<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
The Indonesian Transportation Society (MTI) has called on the
\ngovernment to involve the public in decisions involving the
\ndevelopment of transportation facilities.<\/p>\n
\"The government must involve communities in all stages of
\ntransportation projects,\" MTI chairman Bambang Susantono said on
\nMonday. \"That means from the planning stage to the monitoring and
\nmaintenance of those projects.\"<\/p>\n
He said that consulting the public about transportation was
\ncurrently a mere formality.<\/p>\n
In his presentation at a national transportation workshop,
\nBambang revealed that Indonesian road users spent Rp 1.55
\ntrillion (US$167.26 million) per day on both road maintenance and
\ntravel costs.<\/p>\n
That amount, he said, showed that road users were the primary
\nstake holders of transportation development.<\/p>\n
Road vehicles are the most common form of transportation,
\ndominating passenger services by 84.13 percent (compared to the
\nrailway's 7.32 percent) and the transportation of goods by 90.34
\npercent (0.62 percent by railway).<\/p>\n
\"In urban areas, for instance, administrations should prepare
\na bottom-up plan involving the grass roots and then translate
\nthat plan into an integrated transportation system,\" Bambang
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Road construction, he said, caused heavy traffic congestion
\nthat in Jakarta alone caused Rp 41.05 billion in losses per day.<\/p>\n
\"It is better for the government to develop a mass rapid
\ntransit system like commuter trains rather than build more
\nroads,\" said Bambang.<\/p>\n
Building more roads and not other transportation facilities,
\nhe said, led to the inefficient use of land, while a mass
\ntransportation system could convey more people simultaneously.<\/p>\n
The development of a mass rapid transit system may not seem to
\nhave financial benefits, but would have other benefits, such as
\nincreasing productivity due to less stress caused by traffic
\njams.<\/p>\n
Bambang said the government's plan to build 1,500 kilometers
\nof roads connecting Java and Bali should have included other
\nforms of transportation such as trains for higher efficiency.<\/p>\n
On a national scale, Indonesia needs an umbrella policy
\nderived from its national financial system, he said.<\/p>\n
At the same event, Minister of Transportation Hatta Radjasa
\nsaid the government planned to issue a presidential decree on a
\ntransportation system that would serve as a reference for the
\noverall development of Indonesia's modes of transportation. (003)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/mti-urges-people-centered-transportation-development-1447893297",
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