(Feb News) The Universitas Airlangga Student Research Team who is a member of the SDGS Suroboyo Bus project held a Focus Group Discussion (FGD) together with the UPTD Public Transportation Management (PTU) of the Surabaya City Transportation Department and SDGs Center Unair. This FGD is part of the research output funded through the Call for Research 2025 program by SDGs Center Universitas Airlangga, (7/14/2025).
Their research proposals that focus on the transformation of Suroboyo Bus Human Resources (HR) are considered to have high urgency and strategic relevance to the achievement of sustainable development goals (Sustainable Development Goals), especially in the Public Transportation sector in Surabaya.
The research team consisted of five cross -faculty students: Dhika Riski Wahyuda (Team Leader, Department of Accounting FEB), Aurelya Indah Hapsari (Department of Accounting FEB), Faiz Ibnu Tsani (Department of Accounting FEB), Dina Fadiah (Department of Sociology of FISIP), and Nadhifa Fahira Angelita (Department of Relations of Faculty), under the guidance of Nadia Anridho, S.ak., Mba. Ph.D., as Secretary of the Department of Accounting FEB UNAIR.
This team was chosen as one of the ten research grant recipients who passed the selection. After being announced qualifying on March 10, 2025, they took part in the debriefing on March 19, 2025 at the Airlangga Convention Center (ACC), as well as two monitoring and evaluation sessions held by the SDGs Center Unair on May 2 and July 8, 2025.
FGD entitled "Transformation of Suroboyo Bus HR: Strategies for Strengthening Training, Accessibility, and Safety for the Sustainability of Surabaya City Public Transportation" took place on July 14, 2025 at 09.00-11.12 WIB in the Leadership Meeting Room, 1st Floor, ABC Building, Feb Unair. This activity raises crucial issues in the context of SDGs achievement, especially points 8 (decent work and economic growth), 10 points (reduced gaps), points 11 (sustainable cities and settlements), points 13 (handling climate change), and 17 points (partnership to achieve goals).
The event was opened by Dhika Riski Wahyuda who explained the process and results of descriptive qualitative research on 15 speakers from various elements-managers, supervisors, drivers, non-development officers, to passengers-to get a comprehensive picture of the performance of Suroboyo Bus HR. The next remarks were delivered by Nadia Anridho, S.Ak., MBA., Ph.D., as the Supervisor, followed by the Chairman of the SDGs Center of Airlangga University, Ahmad Safril Mubah, S.IP., M.Hub.int., Ph.D., which emphasized the importance of synergy between academic research and implementation of sustainability -based policy.
In the presentation session, Aurelya Indah Hapsari explained the research urgency, followed by Dhika Riski Wahyuda who delivered four main findings: Operational aspects, infrastructure, services, and work safety. The findings were obtained through direct observation and semi-structured interviews in the field. Furthermore, Faiz Ibnu Tsani and Dina Fadiah conveyed policy recommendations as a solution to the identified challenges.
The discussion took place interactively with the participation of the UPTD PTU representatives of the Surabaya City Transportation Department - Nurul Faradina, Tiara Dika Aulia Ningtyas, and Henry Anantia - who gave responses to research findings and conveyed the latest operational conditions. Discussions also underline the importance of sustainable operational training, integration of inclusive services in SOPs, cooperation with disability communities, stopping bus stops, and optimizing fire extinguishers through cross -agency collaboration.
FGD is closed by preparing strategic steps to improve the quality of services and work systems based on sustainability principles. As a form of appreciation and symbol of collaborative commitment, the research team handed over placards and souvenirs to representatives of the Surabaya City Transportation Department. The hope, the results of this FGD can be followed up concretely for the realization of public transportation in Surabaya that is safe, comfortable, inclusive, and sustainable.
