E. Java accident reflects ignorance and neglect

E. Java accident reflects ignorance and neglect

Danang Parikesit , Director, Center for Transportation and Logistics Studies,
Gadjah Mada University, Yogyakarta

Last week's accident in East Java which claimed the lives of
more than 50 of our children is clear evidence of neglect and
ignorance on the part of the government and transport operators
-- and all of us -- as to the importance of safety in our land
transportation system.

In the last five years, we have witnessed a dramatic decline
in the passenger safety of land transportation. News of train
collisions, trucks and train crashes, bus accidents, and
pedestrians hit by cars and motorcycles is all too common.

Official statistics may show less accidents but the number of
fatalities is increasing. Underreporting makes it difficult to
assess the nature and magnitude of the problems. Out-of-court
settlements, and distrust of law enforcers has contributed to the
failure to deal with passenger safety.

Just two days before the accident happened, the Director
General of Land Transportation at the Ministry of Transportation
talked about vehicle inspection and maintenance. One day before,
in Yogyakarta, where the unfortunate students studied, he met
with provincial, district and city officials to emphasize the
importance of safety in passenger transportation.

True, accidents are rare compared to the amount of traffic on
our roads and railways. A recent survey shows that Indonesians
make 6.5 billion trips a year, not including local trips, and
accidents affect only a tiny fraction of this figure.

However this does not justify our negligence. The "as-long-as-
they-are-not-my-family" syndrome is perhaps the main reason why
most people treat accidents the way they do today, and perhaps
will continue to do so in the future, if no action is taken.

Public education on traffic safety should be the main strategy
as a long-term solution for ensuring better traffic safety. An
illustration of the need for the right type of public education
was the resistance to the compulsory use of safety belts from car
owners and manufacturers.

Finally, the Ministry of Transportation delayed introducing
the compulsory use of safety belts. Why was such a measure
rejected, one which could save lives? Past experience shows that
the government is not prepared to provide public education on
such vital issues.

In developed countries, traffic-safety education is carefully
and prudently designed for school children even as young as at
pre-school age.

The School Safety Patrol is not yet designed to improving
traffic safety awareness, but is rather designed to train young
students to imitate traffic police in the area around the school.

The transportation available to students usually has the
lowest quality standards. As students grow older, their
perceptions of public transportation is that it is an unsafe,
uncomfortable, low quality and polluting means of transportation.
As a consequence, public transportation patronage in Indonesian
cities is gradually declining -- jeopardizing the public
transportation industry and resulting in losses and debt.

The land transportation sector is also an area of tortuous
bureaucracy. The Ministry of Settlement and Regional
Infrastructure is responsible for road infrastructure provision,
the Ministry of Transportation is responsible for transportation
regulation and licensing, the Ministry of Trade and Industry is
responsible for vehicle standards and imports, while road
worthiness is now in the hands of local governments.

Local governments are also responsible for controlling
overloading in the case of freight transportation. The police
issue driving licenses. All of the above arrangements are
responsible for the chaos in the land transportation sector. In
the case of accidents, one blames the other.

The lack of transparency and accountability in each department
in the traffic safety chain is highly worrying. Illegal charges
imposed on truck and bus drivers are common -- thus justifying
violations of regulations among drivers.

The whole transportation industry is, in fact, very vulnerable
to bribery and corruption, which further contributes to neglect
and ignorance as regards passenger safety. For long-distance
passengers and freight transportation, for instance, the tight
competition in the airline business has forced user costs down,
affecting the survival of the bus and trucking industry.

To survive, they have to cut costs -- but not the "hidden
costs" and unnecessary costs. Service quality and safety are
therefore sacrificed.

In the absence of competence standards, anyone holding a
regular driving license for vehicles with larger engines can
drive vehicles carrying paying passengers. Worse still, people
without licenses are able to drive vehicles without being
scrutinized by law enforcers.

It is high time for the government to make a concerted effort
to combat traffic accidents. The formation of a traffic safety
audit team -- consisting of the representatives of various
ministries and departments -- should be the first step toward
establishing standard operating procedures for investigating
accidents and setting infrastructure and vehicle design
standards.

This ad-hoc team should not become a superbody creating more
bureaucratic red-tape. A blue print and a clear road map toward
better traffic safety should be developed in consultation with
all concerned parties.

Corruption-free inspection and maintenance facilities should
be made a reality. The system should avoid direct cash
transactions between vehicle owners and officials in the
inspection facilities. Driving competence should be required to
ensure that the liability of a driver carrying paying passengers
is clearly defined.

Accidents never choose their victims. Whether you are rich or
poor, driving a car or crossing a street, in a city or a remote
village, you could be next. For governments, both central and
local, the transportation industry, user groups and NGOs, now is
the time to act!