Transportation planning is one of the essential aspects of developing urban areas because it plays a role in improving the effectiveness and efficiency of human mobilization. There are various modes of public transportation that governments can choose; to support them, the development and acceleration of roads and railways are needed. However, they should prioritize spending money on railways over roads. I strongly agree that governments should spend more money on railways than on roads, for several reasons.
Firstly, the train is a more effective and efficient mode of public transportation than other modes that use roads. People prefer to use trains because they reduce travel costs, including time, and the prices are affordable. As a result, the number of people using trains has increased in the past decade; the demand for developing train routes has also increased. So, governments must prioritize building railways over building roads because of this.
Secondly, the railway is a regional public transportation system that can connect several cities. For example, in Indonesia, train routes have connected several cities to metropolitan areas. It plays a main role in supporting people in getting to their offices. So, mobilization would be more effective and indirectly help economic activities.
Another reason is that road congestion has increased every year. If governments choose to develop roads rather than railways, it will not reduce congestion. Citizens will use more private transportation, such as cars and motorbikes, which can increase pollution in urban areas. This will be dangerous for human health.
In conclusion, governments should spend their money on developing railways because this can have a positive impact, especially on the effectiveness and efficiency of mobilization in metropolitan areas. In addition, it can promote the use of public transportation rather than private transportation, improving the quality of the environment.