A number of rallies have been staged nationwide in protest of the online services, with conventional drivers complaining that prevailing government regulations fail to ensure fairness for providers of conventional services, both taxi-cab and ojek (motorcycle taxi) drivers.

“The protest was a result of the massive decline in our income. We want the government to provide fairer competition,” conventional taxi driver Muhammad Anwar told a hearing with Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi and Tangerang Mayor Arief R. Wimansyah in Tangerang, Banten, over the weekend.

He added that the current regulation, which obliges only conventional taxis to undergo roadworthiness tests, was unfair.

Echoing Anwar, other drivers pinned high hopes on a newly introduced ministerial regulation to resolve the problem. They said the sudden emergence of appbased drivers had a serious impact on their incomes.

On several occasions the protests have turned violent. In Tangerang, for example, a driver of an angkot (public minivan) allegedly struck an online ojek motorcycle driver in a hit and run, leaving the latter hospitalized. As a response, ojek drivers reportedly took revenge by vandalizing an angkot.

In a bid to ease the tension as well as to provide a more level playing field for everyone in the business, the government has revised a regulation governing the ride-hailing transportation sector.

The broad revision to Transportation Ministerial Decree No. 32/2016 includes stipulations covering the minimum engine capacity to be used by app-based taxis, roadworthiness, tax payment, fare restrictions and fleet quotas for each city.

Minister Budi said the changes were made to better protect passengers and to ensure fair competition between ride-hailing and conventional transportation providers.

In the revision, set to become effective on April 1, the Jakarta Transportation Agency will be able to set a minimum and maximum limit for fares to replace the current market mechanism as well as cap the size of fleets and the number of drivers partnering with ride-hailing app providers in its jurisdiction.

(Read also: More protest app-based transportation)

Budi said that the online-based taxi operators would be given three months’ grace to fulfill the requirements set forth in the revision. If they failed to abide by the regulation, access to the applications might be blocked, he added.

“We aim to ensure equality for everyone involved in the transportation business. We want angkot, conventional taxis and online-based taxis to complete with each other,” Budi said.

He added that in the near future, the government expected a rejuvenation of conventional public transportation modes, including more modernized facilities in a bid to allow them to compete and attract members of the traveling public to use them.

The revision has earned praise from groups of online taxi drivers, who hope that it will better control pricing schemes. However, they also demanded assistance from the authorities to help maintain a conducive situation.

“We hope that the authorities can guarantee our safety, particularly considering that the situation is not yet totally conducive,” Fahmi, a driver with ride-hailing app Uber, said.

He also complained that in applying for a SIM A General, the driver’s license required for driving public transportation cars, some drivers had to pay up to Rp 650,000 (US$48.87) extra, although this was not stipulated in the regulation.

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