June 11, Online

The rising popularity of the Go-Jek smartphone application has created unease among a number of traditional ojek (motorcycle taxi) drivers who wait for customers on the streets, forcing the Go-Jek drivers to take extra precautions during their daily activities.

Go-Jek is a smartphone application with which users can order an ojek to transport them to places or to ask the driver to deliver goods. Users can also track the ojek driver'€™s location through the application using GPS.

Your comments:

Go-Jek offers better quality service (I assume) '€” albeit at a higher price and they feel threatened on '€œtheir turf'€. But now instead of adapting to the presence of competition (in a sense '€” modern service vs. traditional service) and showing improvements (e.g. clean helmets for passengers, safe bikes, rain jackets) all that is coming is physical threats, which of course is the cheapest way to react.

It'€™s not the first time that something like that happened. I remember in the past (around 1994) licensed taxi drivers got physically threatened by unlicensed ones when they wanted to pick up clients in certain areas in Kuta/Seminyak or, years later, when a Jakarta taxi company opened services in Bali, their cars got trashed and the drivers threatened by those who handled affairs previously.

And it'€™s not only the transportation business which sees reluctance to adapting and actually giving better service.

When those who dare to start something new and better become the target of threats, intimidation, blackmailing campaigns, etc. '€” it'€™s an old hat and basically part of '€œtradition'€.

Charles Marks

I decided to try them out the other day and was totally cheesed off with the service I got up until the point when I finally got the driver. I booked a courier delivery for a set time and after one hour waiting past the time I booked it for, I called them up.

I finally got to speak with someone and she said he was on the way. I said he was late. '€œSorry'€ was the standard answer.

I'€™ve read others on various forums with the same issue. It'€™s not good customer service and if they are going to be late they should send a message to us and tell us. Better we know than not.

LAF

I think it'€™s misleading to write that '€œsome traditional ojek drivers do not accept the presence of Go-Jek drivers.'€

Given that The Jakarta Post only managed to come up with one incident of alleged tension between a Go-Jek and some local ojek drivers, I think it'€™s more accurate to assume that this is far from being the norm.

In fact, most ojek drivers had the opportunity to apply to become a Go-Jek driver, and most chose not to do so because they preferred their current arrangement. Many if not most Go-Jek drivers still hang out with their ojek friends when they are not working. It'€™d be much more accurate to say that most ojek drivers don'€™t have problem with Go-Jek.

A Magpie

I am very proud of the guys. Their innovation and business savvy by establishing Go-Jek is a fine example to other entrepreneurs in Indonesia.

Deddy K

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