JAKARTA. The government will relax the regulations on online based taxi. Recently, the government is finalizing the revision of the Regulation of the Minister of Transportation Number 32 Year 2016.

Director of Land Transportation at Ministry of Transportation Pudji Hartanto said that the revision will include some rules related to the type of vehicle that can be operated for online based public transportation. The revised regulation will reduce the minimum limit of the engine cylinder capacity for public transportation from 1,300 cc to 1,000 cc. Therefore, in the future online based taxi providers may deploy low cost green car (LCGC).

The existing regulation does not allow the utilization of LCGC in the business of online based taxi, due to the lack of safety features, such as the absence of anti-lock braking system (ABS). In addition, the low cubication can reduce the vehicle’s stability in a high speed.

Furthermore, the government also will be relaxing technical provisions of vehicle test (KIR). However, Pudji not specify the details of the relaxation. He only said that the cars, which will be used for public transportations will be marked with a sticker of vehicle test (KIR ).

However, Pudji said that the government would not revise the rules on the obligation of registering the vehicle, which is used as an online-based transportation, on behalf of a legal entity.

Ministry of Transportation promises that the revision of the Regulation of the Minister of Transportation Number 32 Year 2016 will be finalized in this week. According to Pudji, the revision aims at giving equal treatments between online-based taxi and conventional taxi.

Transportation observer at University of Trisakti Yayat Supriyatna said, the government needs to review the plan to revise the Regulation of the Minister of Transportation Number 32 Year 2016. The review should include the easing of the vehicle type that can be used for public transportation.

According to Yayat, the relaxation may harm government’s plan to endorse mass transportation, as well as the conventional public transportations.

Furthermore, “People will likely purchase cheap vehicles for business purpose. This is potentially to increase the number of cars on the streets. This has to be reviewed,” said Yayat. (Muhammad Farid/Translator)

Editor: Barratut Taqiyyah Rafie