'Better to take a bus or train than taxi'

'Better to take a bus or train than taxi'

he Jakarta administration has allowed taxi operators to raise
their fares by as high as 38 percent for the meter waiting fee,
despite the fact that their services are often unsatisfactory.
The Jakarta Post asked residents about their comments on the
increase, which comes more than a month after the fuel price
hike.

Saiful Bahri Siregar, 35, is a prosecutor at the Central
Jakarta Prosecutor's Office. He lives with his family in Central
Jakarta:

I'm not a regular taxi user. I only use a taxi when I need to
rush to the court or avoid getting wet in the rain.

I don't think it's the right time to raise taxi fares as
people have not fully adapted to the new fuel prices. So, I don't
think it's a wise decision, considering that a lot of people,
including myself, have yet to see any raise in our salaries.

The decision will probably backfire on the taxi operators
since more people will prefer to take ojek (motorcycle taxis).

Even worse, it may make people think that it's better to own
their own cars rather than spend tens of thousands of rupiah on
taxis every day. This would certainly worsen the traffic
congestion, and in the end no one would profit from it.

Muhammad Toha, 66, is a janitor at the Central Jakarta
District Court. He lives with his wife in Cisadane, Tangerang:

Actually I prefer to use a train rather than taxis. Last year,
I had to take taxi from the court to go home, which cost me Rp
32,000. That is already far too expensive for me.

With the new fares, it might cost me around Rp 50,000 now,
which is equal to the same price of nine train tickets from the
Kota station to Cisadane. I certainly prefer to use public
transport rather than taxis, even if I get home late.

I can't comment on the rise in taxi fares because I already
thought the old fares were too expensive. Raising expensive fares
to make them even more expensive does not make any sense.

Moreover, there are a lot of new bus companies operating in
the Cisadane area. Why would anyone choose a taxi, if buses,
minibuses or ojek are available at any time and are cheaper?

I barely ever see a taxi passing down the main road of the
area where I'm living. With the increased fares, I don't think
this situation will change.

--The Jakarta Post