TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Delegates of ASEAN railway companies visited state-owned train manufacturer PT INKA (Persero) office on Wednesday in Madiun, East Java. They observed the train carriages, the miniatures and tried the train.
“This is our second day visit in the 38th ASEAN Railways CEOs Conference (ARCEO),” said Indonesian delegates chairman Didiek Hartyanto.
Delegates from seven countries, namely Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar participated in the event.
Their first day visit was to Yogyakarta. According to Didiek, they have discussed the role of railways in supporting tourism development, as done in Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia.
“A separate team will study the case to interconnect railway systems which can support tourism,” he said.
Djoko Setijowarno, another Indonesian delegate, said that Indonesia needs to improve its intermodal transportation management. Because the government has been focusing more on infrastructure development than the country’s mode of transport. “It’s Indonesia’s weakness. We have no transportation network,” he said.
Djoko pointed out to the examples of Singapore and China where established intermodal transport has helped tourism development. For example, tourists can use bus or train from airport to their intended destinations. “Using taxi is clearly expensive in the long run,” he said.
NOFIKA DIAN NUGROHO
