Driving anywhere requires proper safety gear and compliance with traffic signs, including within campus areas and residential complexes. However, many motorists are still found not wearing helmets, using improper riding equipment, carrying more than two passengers on a motorcycle, or using mobile phones while riding.
UGM transportation expert Professor Siti Malkhamah stated that fatalities from traffic accidents are dominated by young people, including university and school students, accounting for 81 percent, with 68 percent of them not holding a valid driver’s license. Therefore, efforts to improve road safety literacy at the higher education level are urgently needed.
“Speed management is crucial to prevent accidents. Communication between road users and pedestrians is very important,” Professor Malkhamah emphasized in a statement to reporters regarding the results of the Rabuan Seminar themed Safety Riding in Campus Environment: Policy, Practice and Future Direction, held on Friday (Feb. 27).
In addition to proper riding equipment and cautious behavior, discipline in complying with traffic signs and road markings is essential. According to Professor Malkhamah, implementing measures such as vehicle restrictions, the use of campus bicycles, and the integration of city public transportation with campus routes could encourage greater public transportation use and improve safety, particularly in campus areas.
“I am very optimistic, although it is not easy and cannot be done alone. It requires collaboration across sectors. In developed countries, high safety levels are achieved because collaboration is very strong,” she said.
Head of the UGM Office of Occupational Safety, Emergency, and Environmental Security (K5L UGM), Sugiyanta, stated that campuses are a priority in road safety campaigns. He explained that universities represent ecosystems with a predominantly productive-age population between 15 and 29 years old, characterized by high mobility during daily campus activities.
“Creating a safe and healthy environment is the institution’s responsibility,” he said.
Sugiyanta cited 2025 data showing that the number of traffic accidents at UGM is 7.7 times higher than the healthy campus standard set by the ASEAN University Network (AUN) and HPN. He added that several accident black spots remain at UGM, including Jalan Persatuan, Jalan Pancasila, and Jalan Agro.
“Accidents do not only involve members of the campus community but also the general public, both motorcycle and car users,” he explained.
He further stated that key challenges in promoting road safety on campus include low awareness of riding safety, infrastructure issues such as paving block roads that become hazardous during the rainy season, and fading road markings.
“The role of the UGM campus community must truly be realized,” he stressed.
According to Sugiyanta, K5L officers strive to assist members of the academic community in the event of accidents, from providing on-site response and victim evacuation to facilitating insurance claim processes. In addition, K5L UGM has implemented preventive measures, including speed restrictions in campus areas, the installation of water barriers, and CCTV cameras at several locations across UGM.
“For us, the safety of the campus community is a top priority,” he said.
Meanwhile, Chair of the Health Promoting University UGM (HPU), Professor Yayi Suryo Prabandari, stated that changing ingrained behavior is not easy, including efforts to strengthen road safety education.
“Behavioral change is possible, but it begins with intention,” Professor Prabandari said.
However, she added that intention alone is insufficient and must be supported by the ability to manage emotional responses.
“Earlier, there was a survey about feeling safe. I feel safe when I use protective equipment, and that strengthens my intention,” she explained.
Change can only begin at the individual level, with each person taking responsibility for themselves and those around them, supported by a structured enforcement system for motorists.
“UGM, together with several universities in Indonesia and Southeast Asia, has formulated the healthy campus concept. One of the strategies we adopt is aligned with international health promotion strategies,” she stated.
These formulations include health-oriented campus policies that create supportive environments for health, strengthen campus communities to take health-related actions, develop personal skills, and reorient health services.
Author: Jelita Agustine
Editor: Gusti Grehenson
Post-editor: Zabrina Kumara
Photo: Freepik