Drivers protest ban on travel vans

PALEMBANG, South Sumatra: Some 250 travel drivers from various cities of South Sumatra province visited Palembang Municipal Council on Thursday, to demand that city councillors revoke a bylaw that prevents minivans for hire or travel vans from entering the city.

The drivers complained that they had been blocked from entering the city by local transportation office personnel for the past two weeks, upon the issuance of the bylaw.

The enforcement of the bylaw has left passengers stranded. On several occasions recently, the officials stopped and seized the cars, forcing the passengers to find another means of transportation on the street.

A councillor who received the drivers, Sulaiman Djahri, said that the councillors would soon discuss the demand with the local government. -- JP