City to have no new taxi companies

JAKARTA (JP): A city official said yesterday no new taxi companies could start up because the industry was at saturation point and new companies would not be viable.

Harri Sandjojo, head of the local Economic Development Bureau, said the measure was taken because 29 city companies already operated more than 18,000 taxis.

He said many older cabs were in poor condition and did not comply with safety regulations.

"Right now we are concentrating on restoring the older taxis so that they meet the worth-riding standard," he said.

To achieve the ambition of turning Jakarta into a service city, many efforts have been made to improve taxi services.

The city police recently started an operation to discipline drivers who cheat passengers. More than 500 drivers have been caught.

Furthermore, the number of robberies and murders committed against cab drivers has increased markedly this year.

Association of private public transport owners, Organda, will trial the use of partition screen to protect taxi drivers at the end of the month.

However, a number of taxi drivers were cynical about the partition screens.

"We have heard that screens will be installed in taxis for years now, but neither the city administration nor our employers have done anything about it," one taxi driver said.

Arifin, a Swadharma Taxi driver, said taxi entrepreneurs needed to install the screens immediately to guarantee drivers' safety, since many companies did not provide health and life insurance.

Some companies still charge their drivers rental fees even after they had been robbed.

"Even after a robbery we still have to turn in our daily rental fee of Rp 75,000 (US$30) before we can drive again. If we have to stay home because we can't afford the fee, how can we make a living?" he asked. (04)