Good transportation in a country has a significant role for development because transportation provides accessibility to goods, services, job, opportunities and education, friends and relatives. Without good transportation, life quality will not improve and may lead to prolonged poverty, not only in cities but also rural areas, making it difficult to resolve.
According to Dr. Kuncoro Harto Widodo, Director of Centre for Transportation and Logistics Studies (PUSTRAL), the increased mobility can reduce poverty in in rural areas as mobility can facilitate women, men, and children to easily access services such as education, health, finance, market, goods and income. Social and political participation and community activities can also develop.
Even so, the required mobility demands the combination of trasportation in line with the infrastructure to make better and affordable transportation services so investment in infrastructure became highly important to increase transportation services and efforts to reach Millenium Development Goals (MDGs). "Therefore, real measures are required to help achieve the target," he said at UGM campus, Wednesday (2/3) in response to the holding of Training and Workshop Rural Trasportation Policy and Management by PUSTRAL UGM from 23-25 February 2011.
Apart from economic purposes, various transportation policy should pay attention to the social aspects related to health, education and women’s welfare. Transportation planning will surely be more effective if involving public participation, including women’s active role, they are expected to help identify the route most assessed by people. Technical design form can open job opportunities for the local community.
"To select a design is not only trusted to engineers and planners, so in development and provision of facilities for transport in rural areas can not be considered as similar to city transportation,” Kuncoro described.
In developing and providing adequate transport in rural areas the issue that normally occurs are limited budget and financial feasibility.
Financially, transportation in rural areas are often seen as not proper, because much higher expenditure is unequivalent to revenue. "This is the main obstacle for operators in giving services in rural areas, The government seems not having adequate funds, either,” Kuncoro said.
This is where the importance of the holding of Training and Workshop Rural Trasportation Policy and Management. This aims at a forum for sharing information and experience of participants from different countries. This event is also expected to widen networking among individuals and institutions for knowledge of sustainable rural transportation.
This workshop is attended by national and international decision makers, transportation organisations and other stakeholders representing private sector, academicians, scientific institutions, consultants and researchers. Participants include UNESCAP, government agencies such as R&D Transpotation, Bappeda and Transportation agency. Academicians are UGM, ITS, and Universitas Atmajaya, FSTPT, Forum Indonesia dari Pedesaan Transportasi Pembangunan (IFGRTD) and Masyarakat Transportasi Indonesia (MTI).
Speakers are Prof. Dr. Sunyoto Usman (UGM MICD), Prof. Dr. Danang Parikesit (Chairman – IFRTD), Dr. Kuncoro Harto Widodo, Dr. Krishna S Pribadi (lecturer – ITB), Mr. Tyrone Toole (Inisiatif Infrastruktur Indonesia – IndII), Mr. Leo De Jong (Consultant- Keypoint), Mr. Widi Sutikno (Head of Irrigation, Sleman), Mr. A. Sutrisno (Project head PNPM, Sleman), Mr. Arif Wismadi (Coordinator – IFGRTD). They have the opportunity to visit PNPM project and evacuation route of Merapi in Argomulyo and Kepuharjo on 23 February 2011.