Indonesia’s capital Jakarta is seeing a growing number of transportation services catering exclusively to women, offering better security and comfort in the Indonesian capital of 10 million people.
Ladyjek, one of the most recent entrants to the female-only taxi services, has seen business take off less than four months after starting operations in the predominately Muslim nation.
The company’s motorcycle drivers, sporting bright pink helmets, can easily be ordered using a mobile app.
Uki Pratiwi, a resident of the capital and a Ladyjek user, said the experience felt much safer than the city’s packed public buses and trains.
“In other forms of public transportation such as public minivans, there are too many men in such a tight space, which makes me feel very uncomfortable. However, I feel safe if it’s Ladyjek because the bikers are also women,” she said.
The service also offers a safer form of employment for female drivers who say they are concerned about their safety when fetching male passengers.
Since its launch in October, the Ladyjek mobile app has been downloaded about 50,000 times and hundreds of Indonesians use its services each day, said Ladyjek founder, Brian Mulyadi.
The company employs about 2,400 drivers, mostly housewives or students, and hopes to soon expand outside the capital.
Dozens of motorcycle-sharing companies have set up in Indonesia in the past year or so, seeking to emulate the success of Go-Jek, the first firm in Jakarta to use smartphones to tap into the country’s millions of traditional motorcycle taxis, known as ojeks.
“Women need to feel safe and comfortable and public transport has to be convenient for them (to use). The other online motorbike taxi services are very convenient but there’s no service to take care of the safety and comfort of women. That’s why I created Ladyjek. I want all female bikers and users to feel comfortable and safe,” Mulyadi said.
Last June, the rape of a woman in a public minivan sparked uproar in Jakarta, but critics say the government has done little to prevent future cases.
“The government hasn’t really done much. Even when there are passengers who felt they had been harassed and reported it to authorities, the police were often confused about how to tackle the problem. They should take immediate action, and there must be a CCTV installed at unsafe public spots in the city,” said transportation analyst Azas Tigor Nainggolan.
Now, even train services beginning to offer female-only coaches, to the relief of women passengers.
“After the women-only coach service started, I feel more comfortable. It would be great if the authorities could add more coaches like this,” said Jakarta resident Erlina who was waiting for the train.
Other companies similar to Ladyjek include Ojesy or Ojek Syari, employ hijab-wearing drivers. (Reuters)