'Bajaj' still get the adrenaline running

'Bajaj' still get the adrenaline running

After carrying Jakartans around for almost 30 years, the days of
the bajaj (three-wheeled motorized vehicles) are numbered. The
city administration will phase out the Indian-made bajaj in favor
of locally made kancil (four-wheeled motorized vehicles). The
Jakarta Post's Evi Mariani compared the presence of bajaj here
and in India, their country of origin, during a visit to Mumbai.
This is the fifth of six articles.

There are two popular jokes on bajaj that must be remembered by
those who usually travel in them. First, the bajaj's brakes are
on the driver's shoulder, meaning you have to tap him there to
make him stop. Second, only God and the bajaj driver know when it
will turn.

Although the jokes are indicative of bajaj drivers'
recklessness, the orange, noisy and polluting vehicle has been an
affordable means of public transportation in Jakarta, as well as
an alternative for me besides ojek (motorcycle taxis).

When I went to Mumbai, an Indian financial center, for a week-
long conference several months ago, I found that taxis were very
expensive, as the distance from my hotel to the conference hall
was around 15 kilometers, while buses were confusing for me.

In practice, I had no choice other than bajaj.

Even in the country where they were originally invented, bajaj
are considered second-class transportation. They are banned from
entering the downtown area. Bajaj -- known locally as
autorickshaws, autos or three-wheelers -- may travel only around
the city's outskirts.

The bajaj in India are newer models than those in Jakarta.
Producer Bajaj Auto Ltd. has made them larger and sturdier.

Each bajaj can accommodate up to three medium-size passengers,
compared with two in Jakarta. The driver's cabin still has extra
room for the driver's mate, many of whom I often saw hitchhiking
for a ride by standing uncomfortably on the edge of the vehicle.

Many passengers, particularly foreigners, felt unable to
refuse when the bajaj driver asked us to share the vehicle with
other people.

"Two. Come with us," said a driver pointing at two other
people, who were grinning hopefully at me, waiting for me to say
"OK". Indeed, "OK" is usually the passenger's reply.

Despite some uncomfortable rides with other strangers, I
learned a few things about bajaj in India. They use compressed
natural gas (CNG), which is much cleaner than gasoline. In
Jakarta, bajaj are equipped with a two-stroke engine, which
produces thick smoke.

The worsening air pollution in the last few years in India's
big cities has prompted the government to promote the use of CNG
for taxis and bajaj, rather than diesel fuel or gasoline.

However, the noise remains. Albeit slightly quieter, they are
almost as loud as Jakarta bajaj. If passengers are lucky enough,
they may enjoy loud Indian music from the stereo set installed by
the owners of some bajaj.

Braking is another thing. The joke that the brake is on the
bajaj driver's shoulder was also the case in Mumbai. It was not
because the drivers did not hear my voice, but they insisted on
speeding along, regardless of whether the road was empty or
crowded.

As a result of speeding, "I almost died!" has been a familiar
comment uttered by people who have just finished a bajaj journey.

The bajaj we took had frequent near-misses with a variety of
other vehicles -- bajaj, taxis, private cars, buses or even large
trucks.

From what I have learned, bajaj in Mumbai and Jakarta are as
agile as panicked cockroaches when dodging potential human
killers. No matter how large or small the differences may be, the
bajaj spirit will not die easily.