Taxi drivers find work unprofitable

SURABAYA, East Java: Thousands of taxis here have remained in their depots due to Tuesday's fuel price increases.

Antara reported yesterday that many of the drivers decided that the monetary crisis, compounded by rising fuel prices, had made driving their taxis unprofitable. The situation is worse given that spare parts prices have gone up as much as 300 percent.

"For Zebra Taxi alone, only 500 out of the 2,500 taxis are in operation," said Sogiyanto, a driver at Zebra which is the biggest taxi company in the city.

According to the taxi drivers, Surabaya residents were increasingly reluctant to use taxis.