Elderly safety and accessibility as planning considerations for residential areas along the Alalak Riverbank, Banjarmasin

Abstract

The community living along the Alalak riverbank in Banjarmasin is highly dependent on the river including transportation purposes, economic, social, and cultural support, and for daily needs. This underlines the importance of access to the river, which supported by wooden footbridges. Meanwhile, community members who depend on the river vary from children to the elderly whereas the elderly have different needs compared to other age groups. Several accidents with the elderly have been recorded in the last five years due to the poor accessibility to facilities. This study evaluated the cause of the poor accessibility to facilities for the elderly and the community planning process in the area. The planning process is discussed within the framework of community development and transformative planning theories. The study uses descriptive-qualitative methods. Five neighborhood groups or RukunTetangga (RT) have been chosen as samples using purposive sampling. This study demonstrated that there is no established planning process for the provision and constructionof access facilities. The poor accessibility to facilities iscausedby two factors, i.e., the lack of consideration for the needs of the elderly in the planning process, and poor maintenance.