Pamulang residents hit by drivers strike
Pamulang residents hit by drivers strike
TANGERANG (JP): Hundreds of passengers were stranded for the second day yesterday as 180 drivers of vehicles plying the Pamulang to Lebak Bulus route went on strike.
Drivers and owners of the eight-seat minivans number D15 said they were protesting the recent operation of a rival fleet run by a cooperative called Koperasi Wahana Kalpika (KWK).
On Monday afternoon KWK minivan number S09 was plying the Pamulang to Kebayoran Lama route. The disputed part of the route is the 12-kilometer stretch from Pamulang in Tangerang, passing through Pondok Cabe to Lebak Bulus in South Jakarta.
A fight occurred after drivers stopped a KWK vehicle, reminding him that D15 owners had told KWK to stop operating their 10 vehicles before a clear-cut agreement was reached. KWK began their new route last month.
"No agreement has been reached so far," said Ramli Hasibuan, a spokesman for the D15 drivers and owners.
Witnesses said two KWK vehicles were damaged in the fight, in which drivers from both sides were slightly injured.
After the fight the remaining KWK vehicles operated with the protection of a police car, a witness said.
Yesterday the drivers and owners gathered at a corner of the Pondok Cabe airfield, and parked their vehicles there.
"We will not operate until a fair settlement is reached," said Ramli.
Proposal
Guarded by a number of security personnel, drivers and owners discussed their plans to go to the South Jakarta office of the Land Transport Agency, which issued KWK its permits.
"We will propose to the authorities that if KWK vehicles must continue to operate, it should only be allowed to ply the same route like us," Ramli told The Jakarta Post.
Meanwhile passengers-to-be waited for up to one hour from early morning as both D15 and KWK vehicles were not operating.
Some passengers were forced to take motorcycle taxis which charged Rp 5,000 to Lebak Bulus, as all public transportation vehicles were full.
"I'm still waiting for a public vehicle, I can't afford to pay for a motorcycle taxi," said Rosidah, a junior school teacher.
By 8 a.m. some passengers had managed to get free rides in private vehicles.
Ramli said the KWK permits are questionable.
"KWK claims to have had permits since 1989 but they only began operating this year," he said.
He said D15 owners have heard KWK plans to operate up to 40 vehicles along the route, which would be a threat to D15's 180 vehicles.
"Even now we can only get an average of Rp 15,000 (US$6.45) per day while we have to pay owners Rp 30,000 to enable them to pay the installments for the vehicles," he added.
There are 360 drivers of the D15 vehicles. However Ramli, an owner of six vehicles, said he had yet to list the number of owners, who are unorganized.
He said D15 has secured permits for up to 200 vehicles.
La Ode Djeni Hasmar, the owner of the KWK cooperative, said the permits from 1989 are still in effect although the cooperative has only recently managed to go into operation.
"I think (the fight) stemmed from a lack of coordination between the West Java and South Jakarta offices of the Land Transport Agency," said Djeni, who said he just heard of the trouble. (anr)