2,000 drivers in Jakarta protest ride-hailing apps

An estimated 2,000 taxi and bus drivers gathered in downtown Jakarta on Monday to protest ride-hailing apps like Uber and Grab taking away their business.

The planned peaceful protest started at City Hall at 8 a.m. and marched to the presidential palace in the Indonesian capital, say reports. Police told TechinAsia that by late morning, about 1,500 people had joined, and more were gathering.

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According to the Jakarta Post, there were other satellite protests held around greater Jakarta, and drivers there wore black arm bands to symbolise the "death" of public transportation services in Indonesia.

The drivers, who are part of the Land Transportation Drivers Association (PPAD), include drivers of three-wheeled Bajaj vehicles, motorcycle-taxis called ojek, and small private buses and taxis.

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The drivers are unhappy with taxi-hailing apps eating into their share of the public transportation pie. It appears this trend is set to continue, as the apps branch out beyond regular taxis.

U.S.-based Uber, for one, just started adding motorcycle-taxis to its ride options in Bangkok -- a particularly popular mode of transport in Asian cities -- paving the way for the company to potentially offer this to other neighbouring countries in the region.

This follows Malaysian app Grab's move to include motorcycle riders in its service, which it started in Vietnam in 2014 and Bangkok in August 2015.

There have been several large protests by taxi drivers in the region against ride-hailing apps in the past 12 months. A mob of 250 taxi drivers in Malaysia marched down the street protestingUber and Grab in November 2015.

In Australia, about 400 drivers gathered in front of Victoria's state parliament in Melbourne in September last year to voice their unhappiness with Uber.

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