Maker swears 'Kancil' ahead of the pack
After transporting Jakartans for nearly three decades, the city's bajaj will begin disappearing from the streets over the next few days. The city administration is determined to phase out the Indian-made bajaj in favor of locally made kancil (mini-taxi, literally means "mouse deer" in Bahasa Indonesia). The Jakarta Post's Urip Hudiono has been looking back at the history of the bajaj and the role these vehicles played in the development of Jakarta. This is the fourth of six articles.
The producers of kancil are certain that everyone will benefit, including drivers and owners, when kancil replace bajaj as a low- cost transportation alternative for short trips.
PT Kurnia Abadi Niaga Citra Indah Lestari (PT Kancil) corporate secretary Kresna Didjaya, explained that passengers would benefit most as kancil were designed with an emphasis on comfort.
"Kancil can easily accommodate up to five passengers -- two up front, including the driver, and three in the back," he said. "Its closed compartment means that passengers feel protected from possible crime on the streets."
The locally assembled four-wheeled vehicle, which is 2.8 meters long, 1.385 meters wide and 1.72 meters high, is also equipped with a separate baggage compartment at the rear. Its 400cc, 13.5 horsepower engine will enable it to carry a total weight of 850 kilograms, even uphill.
In comparison, the three-wheeled Indian-made bajaj can carry a maximum four passengers -- including the driver -- and a total weight of some 500 kilograms.
The city administration has planned to gradually replace the existing 14,000 bajaj with kancil, on the grounds that the noisy bajaj are no longer roadworthy.
Many bajaj drivers and owners have opposed the plan for fear that it will put them out of work. They say kancil are too expensive and their maintenance costly.
The kancil are offered for Rp 34 million (US$3,777), more than twice the cost of a bajaj.
Kresna, however, mentioned that his company had developed a credit scheme for bajaj owners, whereby they can purchase kancil within two years through daily installments of Rp 50,000.
"Of course, such a payment would be difficult to fulfill if you were driving a bajaj. But, I'm sure that kancil will attract more passengers," he said.
He added that kancil had automatic transmission, which meant that drivers could work for longer hours and earn more money.
In addition to the credit scheme, Kresna explained that kancil owners would earn up to Rp 3 million a year from advertisements placed on their vehicles.
"The owners would also sign an agreement, which would require them to uphold the image of the product they were advertising, in that way they would be encouraged not to drive recklessly," he said.
Kresna pointed out that the body of the kancil was fiberglass, meaning that cleaning was a wash-and-wipe job, and rust was not a problem.
"Kancil's four-stroke engine is fuel efficient, and has a lower emission than a two-stroke engine," he said. "It can also run on compressed natural gas, besides gasoline."
The company has prepared its production line and distribution, which answers any questions over supply and spare parts. Both its assembly plants -- in Cikande, Banten province, and Madiun, East Java -- can produce 40 kancil a day.
"Considering that there are 25 work days in a month, we will be able to produce 1,000 kancil each month," Kresna said.