Soluna taxis launched

JAKARTA (JP): The operator of New Gading Taxi, PT Abdi Gading Kencana, launched on Thursday a new fleet of taxis comprising 100 Soluna cars.

Company president Wiranti Wibawa said in a statement her company was the first in the capital to use Soluna cars.

The company will gradually replace its existing 1,600 cc Ford Laser taxi fleet with 1,500 cc Toyota Solunas, Wiranti said, adding that the company had allocated Rp 100 billion (US$10 million) for the program.

She said replacing the Ford Lasers with Solunas was part of the company's strategy to keep ahead of the increasing competition in Jakarta's taxi business.

"We hope the new sedans will help us attract more customers," she said

Soluna, which is produced by Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corporation, was launched last year by Toyota's Indonesian subsidiary, PT Astra International. (05)