Was in Jakarta a few days back again and once again traffic was a nightmare (Welcome to Jakarta!)
Made a few notes about my ride experiences when using uber, grab and bluebird taxis.
Do also look at my previous post on taking taxi from the Jakarta airport as well as my experience on blue bird rides.
Some notes when choosing to take uber or grab in Indonesia:
- When taking uber, problem encountered: GPS is spotty
As such, the uber car icons may not be showing accurately where the driver location is. There are times where the car has arrived but the uber app still shows the car being few minutes away.
- So, do we wait and trust in the drivers?
No! Some of the uber drivers in Indonesia do not know the way, does not come if there is police, and they do not cancel the ride. They wait for you to cancel the ride and you get hit by the cancellation fee of RP30,000 once you have waited more than 5 minutes.
If there is still no sign of your driver, please make alternative plans or book again. - Please remember to claim back your cancellation fee if it is not your fault.
Yes, although it might be a small amount from your perspective. But lets not condone with the drivers who are abusing this system. - So, what are some tips to mitigate this?
There is the call driver function to let the driver know where you are and if he is really coming or not. Only thing is, the drivers are usually not well versed in English and speak Bahasa. What you can try is to pass to a local next to you to help explain your pick up location. The locals are generally friendly and helpful. - What else can I do?
Another alternative to consider is blue bird. They are generally available but you will have to live with the advantages uber and grab gives, which is their GPS-enabled navigation to your desired location. - That is a sacrifice to bear in time-sensitive times, until the system and driver pool quality of uber and grab taxis improve in Jakarta.
Learn tips, share tips
EUFASS
