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ublicly listed taxi operator PT Express Transindo Utama (Express Group), which operates Express and Eagle taxis, said its first-half profit dropped slightly, apparently due to the rising popularity of app-based transportation services.

Express finance director David Santoso said some of its customers had turned to the app-based services for lower prices, leaving the company with smaller profits.

'€œThey are offering discounts to customers,'€ David said, referring to app-based taxi services including Grab Taxi and Uber as well as motorcycle taxi services Go-jek and Grab Bike.

According to him, some Express'€™ drivers had joined those app-based transport services to become part-time drivers.

'€œAround 10 percent [of our drivers] have joined that business,'€ the company'€™s operational senior manager Heryanto told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

Heryanto added some drivers only worked with those app-based services during a break from their main job at Express.

'€œBecause app-based transports are a new phenomenon so they [the drivers] want to give it a try. But some of them do it during a break from here [Express Group]. Just as a part-time job,'€ Heryanto added.

David said such app-transport services, especially those that use two-wheeled vehicles, would not last long. He said at the end customers would return to using taxis when their discount period is over.

'€œThey are in the promotional period now. They cannot continue to offer discounts to customers indefinitely,'€ he said.

'€œIt is impossible to use their services during rainy season,'€ he added, referring to two-wheeled vehicles that are used by companies like Go-jek and Malaysia-based Grab Bike.

David further criticized app-based transports by calling them illegal for not obeying traffic and land transportation regulations, which require public transport vehicles to use yellow license plates.

'€œIt is evident that they are against the law,'€ he said. '€œThe government has never allowed two-wheeled vehicles to be used as public transport,'€ he added.

On Monday, Express Group inaugurated its seventh taxi pool at Thamrin City, a mall located in a densely populated area in Central Jakarta. The company said it wanted to extend its reach to customers around the area, which they said still lacked convenient public transport.

'€œEagle Taxi is expected to fulfill customers'€™ demands for convenient transport around the shopping center and the surrounding densely-populated area,'€ the company said in a statement.

The company has prepared 167 sedans for the new pool. David said the company had invested Rp 200 million (US$14,238) per sedan.

David said he was optimistic the new pool, which was made for Eagle Taxi, would be able to attract more customers because it would be located near Tanah Abang market, one of the biggest traditional markets in Jakarta.

'€œEagle is expected to contribute 20 to 30 percent of Express Group'€™s total revenue,'€ he said.

Meanwhile, Heryanto said the company planned to launch an app similar to Go-jek and Grab Bike to make it more convenient for their customers to use Eagle Taxi services. (saf)