SURAKARTA, Indonesia – December 11, 2025
The city of Surakarta officially launched the Indonesia component of the AI&Me: Empowering Youth for Livable Cities program, marking Indonesia’s entry into an innovative framework that puts young people at the forefront of urban road safety improvements.
The urgency of this initiative is highlighted by stark national and local data. In 2025, more than half of Indonesia’s population is children and young people between the ages of 0 and 34, according to BPS-Statistics Indonesia. Yet this same age group accounts for over half of all road crash victims, as reported by the National Development Planning Ministry. In Surakarta specifically, there were more than 1,200 road crashes in 2023, resulting in 59 fatalities and 1,404 victims with light injuries, according to BPS-Statistics Surakarta.
These sobering figures make Surakarta an ideal city for the AI&Me: Empowering Youth for Livable Cities program. This initiative serves as a strategic approach to road safety advocacy by providing recommendations for safer streets around schools and contributing to the Road Safety Action Plan mandated by Presidential Regulation No. 1 of 2022 on the National General Plan for Traffic Safety and Road Transport.
The stakeholder workshop, held at Alila Hotel on Thursday, brought together local government officials, education leaders, and international road safety experts to inaugurate the program that aims to transform how Surakarta addresses road safety challenges affecting young populations. The event was highlighted by the ceremonial signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Deputy Mayor of Surakarta and Transportologi, the lead consultant implementing the initiative in Indonesia, formalizing their partnership to create safer streets for the city’s youth.
Ceremonial signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between the Deputy Mayor of Surakarta and Transportologi
“Road crashes remain the leading cause of death for children and young adults worldwide, including in our city,” said Sukma Larastiti, Director of Transportologi during the workshop. “The AI&Me program empowers young people to identify road safety issues in their communities and ensures their voices actively contribute to solutions.”
The AI&Me framework was successfully implemented in Vietnam from 2022 to 2024 and is now being scaled to Indonesia with support from the International Road Assessment Programme (iRAP), AIP Foundation, and Youth for Road Safety (YOURS) as part of AI&Me: Empowering Youth for Livable Cities, funded by Fondation Botnar and the FIA Foundation. The initiative features three key technological components working in concert: Triagem de Big Data identifies high-risk schools, a Aplicativo de envolvimento juvenil (YEA) enables students to report safety concerns, and Classificação por estrelas para escolas (SR4S) assessments validate findings and guide infrastructure improvements.
The program in Surakarta will initially focus on at least three high-risk schools, engaging approximately 300 students in total. Through the Youth Engagement App, students will document road safety concerns around their schools. Combined with SR4S assessment results, these insights will provide evidence-based data to inform government infrastructure investments. The program will run through 2027 and includes plans for master training sessions, community engagement campaigns, infrastructure advocacy, and a closing workshop to explore opportunities for scaling.
Sukma Larastiti, Director of Transportologi, emphasized the importance of youth empowerment and the Safe System Approach in addressing road safety challenges faced by young people
By giving young people the tools and platform to shape their own environments, Surakarta is pioneering an approach that could transform road safety efforts across Indonesia and beyond.
Image credits: Transportologi
About Transportologi
Transportologi (Center for Sustainable Mobility Studies Transportologi) is an Indonesian consulting firm dedicated to advancing sustainable mobility as a fundamental human right. Founded as a community in April 2017 and formally established as PT. Pusat Studi Mobilitas Lestari Transportologi in October 2023, the organization brings specialized expertise in urban mobility and transportation consulting to support local, regional, and national development.
The organization is driven by the belief that sustainable mobility transformation begins with meeting human mobility needs that are accessible, equitable, healthy, low-emission, and resilient while ensuring planetary sustainability. The organization provides technical assistance for sustainable mobility and transportation planning, helping cities and regions realize transportation systems that prioritize people and the environment. As the lead consultant for the AI&Me program in Indonesia, Transportologi brings this commitment to youth empowerment and evidence-based road safety improvements in Surakarta and beyond.
For Media Contact
Sukma Larastiti
Director
Transportelogia
E-mail: surel.sukma@gmail.com
For More Information on AI&Me: Empowering Youth for Livable Cities Program
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