Public transportation vehicle hailing apps are all the rage these days. After taxis and ojeks, we’re soon going to be able to hail a Bajaj using our phones in Jakarta.
The Organization of Land Vehicle Owners (Organda) is launching the Bajaj app service in September, with many of its drivers set to adopt the new online system.
“All of the [gas powered Bajaj] armada of about 7,000 will join,” said Jakarta Organda Chairman Shafruhan Sinungan, as quoted by Metro TV yesterday.
You may think that Bajajs are too primitive to make the jump to online service, which is why Organda is training their drivers gradually to adapt to the technology.
“They (the drivers) have mobile phones, but most of them aren’t Android phones. That’s why, since we’re using the Android system and an app, we must train them first,” Shafruhan said.
Organda is also going to hand out adequate smartphones to the Bajaj drivers who don’t already own one.
Like the Go-jek and Grabbike apps, the Bajaj app allows customers to hail a Bajaj to transport goods across the city, though we haven’t heard if the app is providing a food delivery service yet.
Hopefully, this Bajaj app is able to keep the three-wheeled vehicles in check, because they have a reputation of being reckless and annoying on the road. And if their entry into the app market can fuel another price war, then we’ll be all the more happier.
