Jakarta – For many Jakartans who seek short rides to places where no buses or minibuses can reach, Bajaj, a three-wheeled taxi, always comes in handy.
The iconic three-wheeled scooter-taxi was first imported from India in 1975, during President Soeharto's rule, with an aim to replace becaks, or rickshaws, that were then ubiquitous in the country's capital.
Four decades since then, Bajajs have become almost synonymous with Jakarta. Unlike their counterparts in India, Jakarta's bajajs are not metered – charges are based on negotiation with the drivers.
But as Jakarta grows into a busy, crowded metropolis, filled with large malls, skyscrapers and high-rise buildings, the tricycles are now deemed unfit to serve modern travelers.
Bajajs began to be seen as unsafe and a veritable source of pollutants, while their drivers are often accused as undisciplined, if not downright careless. The old orange Bajajs, especially, have gained a well-deserved reputation as smoke-spewing, noisy and belligerent road pests.
"Only God and the driver knows where the Bajaj is going to turn," as the adage now says, referring to the fact that the old orange Bajaj is not fitted with signal lights.
"They are annoying. They're big, but they behave like motorbikes, going up on pedestrian strips and blocking traffic," Andi, 30, a private employee who rides a motorbike to his office, said.
Marliana, 31, a mother of two, claims the Bajajs' bad image has not stopped her from taking them every day.
"I need them, they are easy to find and can quickly get me to the market. The ride is a bit shaky, but it's fine," she said, adding that her children also love to ride Bajajs as their open windows means they rarely get carsick.
Since 2006, many refreshed Bajajs have been seen in the capital, as the Indian Bajaj Auto's local partner Abdi Raharja won permits to import thousands of new blue four-stroke, compressed natural gas-run vehicles, to replace the older two-stroke orange models.
Phasing out old Bajaj?
While the public is not entirely against the three-wheeled vehicles, the Jakarta city government has made several efforts to phase out Bajajs by limiting the areas where they can park and ride, and by freezing permits for new operations.
In July, the Jakarta Transportation Agency banned Bajaj from stopping and waiting for passengers in front of the Presidential Palace, or along Jalan Medan Merdeka Utara in Central Jakarta.
Land Transportation Organization (Organda), an umbrella organization for public land transport businesses, has recently submitted a proposal to transform Bajajs into four-wheeled vehicles and transform them into minicabs, but with an engine capacity of less than 300 cubic centiliters.
Shafruhan Sinungan, who heads Organda in Jakarta, told Kompas.com that the organization plans to buy around 2,000 of the modified Bajajs. He said Organda is currently discussing the plan with the Jakarta Transportation Agency.
Jakarta Governor Basuki "Ahok" Tjahaja Purnama does not seem to like the plan, arguing it will trigger an increase in the number of Bajajs driving across the capital and interfere with the administration's grand plan to get more people to use public transportation, especially the buses.
"Our focus is on bigger means of transportation. If our buses, which charge only Rp 3,500 (less than 30 cents) can transport people home, [Bajaj] will have no chance [to survive]," Ahok said.
Ahok said the city administration has been kind enough to still allow Bajaj's presence in the capital, but he will stick to the regulation that no more new permits for Bajaj drivers will be issued. Currently, there are about 14,000 blue and orange Bajajs in the capital.
Chairman of the Institute for Indonesian Transportation (Instran) and transportation expert Dharmaningtyas said Jakarta still needs Bajaj and the tricycles have a strong legal basis for their continuing existence.
He was referring to the Jakarta regional government's regulation No. 4 of 2014, according to which Bajaj is defined as a para-transit mode of public transportation and allowed to operate on Jakarta's roads.
"This mode of transportation is needed by housewives when they need to go to the market, by kids going to and from school, basically almost everyone who travels short distances," Dharmaningtyas said.
He said the strong demand for such mode of transportation can be seen from the fact that Bajaj drivers all across the city can still afford the daily rental fee of up to Rp 160,000 per day to the vehicles' owners.
According to him, para-transit public transport, which can connect areas not touched by buses or other larger public transport, will actually see an increasing demand.
Dharmaningtyas based his arguments on a study carried out by Instrans, which showed that in 2010, 21.5 million people used public transportation in the greater Jakarta area. In 2015, the figure soared to 47.5 million as the population in the city and its outskirts increased.
He called on the Jakarta government to make a clear road map for public transportation to support the huge movement of people in the capital and its surrounding cities.
Dharmaningtyas said the three-wheeled Bajaj, due to its functionality, needs to remain in the capital, but its routes should be regulated so that its road presence does not overlap with other modes of public transportation.
Source: http://jakartaglobe.beritasatu.com/business/bajaj-jakarta-need/