mTransport DIY, So You Won’t Get Lost in Yogya

As one of the most famous provinces in Indonesia, Yogyakarta’s street is full of tourists and students. To help them get around, Yogya’s Department of Transportation is providing a transport information app to mobile users for free. Partnering with app developer Gamatechno, it has created and is now presenting mTransport DIY for Android users.

Before you jump to the conclusion that the DIY in this case means ‘Do it yourself’, we have to make it clear that it doesn’t. It actually means ‘Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta’ (Special Region Yogyakarta), which is the official title of the province.

The app makes it easier for citizens and tourists to get information about bus routes, train and flight schedules, and even real time street conditions from IP Cam/CCTV right to your smartphone. This is all thanks to the Department of Transportation, which is giving users access to this data to make travel in Yogya simpler and less confusing.

Oki Wicaksono, a software developer from Gamatechno, explained to Penn-Olson:

This application is a form of public service funded by the Department of Transportation. For the moment the app is only for the Yogya region. We are going to develop this app for the BlackBerry platform, just wait and see.

Android users can download the app here for Android 2.1 and here for 2.2 and above.
Considering Indonesia’s streets are packed and somewhat unruly, this app is very useful, especially for new visitors to Yogya. Hopefully in the future, more cities will develop their own apps as well.