A 10-member Indonesian delegation on a three-day visit to Ahmedabad is keen to learn more from the city's successful Bus Rapid Transit System and slum development programmes.
A 10-member Indonesian delegation on a three-day visit to Ahmedabad is keen to learn more from the city's successful Bus Rapid Transit System and slum development programmes run by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation.
The delegation from Surabaya, the capital of East Java in Indonesia, hopes to implement the same in their own city.
The delegation includes members from the urban planning, transport planning, officials of the World Bank, and also the mayor of Surabaya, Tri Rismaharini.
During interaction with the municipal commissioner, Rismaharini showed interest in how AMC has implemented different slum development programmes for the city. In her presentation, she highlighted the challenges faced by the local administration in providing better transport services.
"We have only one BRTS-like corridor from north to south. We need to develop an efficient mass transport system, as well as other feeder bus systems," she said.
According to Peter Ellis, senior economist at the World Bank and a member of the delegation, Surabaya needs an effective road transport system like Ahmedabad. "Surabaya has developed significantly during the last few years, and road transport will be a better option than underground metro rail," said Ellis.
Surabaya has 270 regular buses running on 22 routes in the city. The remaining transportation is handled by an unorganised network of 5,016 privately owned 'microbuses' which are highly inefficient and unreliable.
"We are here to learn about BRTS and feeder bus network, so that we can solve the transportation issues of Surabaya," said Arief Mulya Ramadhian, urban specialist, World Bank.
Surabaya is the second largest city of Indonesia with a population of 30 lakh with an additional 80 lakh living in the city's suburbs. The city has grown to be a commercial hub in recent times and is connected with major ports for the export of rice and other commodities.
The delegation was also interested in the riverfront project, which they said could become the role model for their own waterfront project.
They visited the riverfront and learnt about the AMC's relocation of thousands of slum dwellers of economically weaker section (EWS) and the slum networking project. The World Bank played a key role in organising the visit.
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