This smartphone app lets you call motorcycle taxis in Indonesia

Anyone who’s been to Jakarta knows how bad the traffic congestion can be. It’s a huge pain for the city, and the government has not been able to crack this problem in the last decade. So for those who need to navigate the traffic quickly, the best solution now is to ride the ojek (motorcycle taxis).

The thing is, ojek-riding is a low-tech process. You need to get down and meet the riders in person and negotiate the pricing. And when you sit down and ride the bike, you’ll be wearing this nasty, smelly helmet which has probably been used by dozens of passengers before you. It’s an unpleasant experience.

But thanks to technology, this problem may well be behind us in the next decade as companies like Go-Jek are trying to become the Uber for motorcycles in Indonesia. Yesterday, Go-Jek officially unveiled its apps for Android and iOS, letting users order motorcycles – either for transportation, courier, or shopping services – via smartphones.

Go-Jek has been around since 2011, and operates mainly in Jakarta, Depok, Tangerang, and Bekasi areas (Jabodetabek). The company works with about 800 motorcycle riders, and executes hundreds orders daily. Despite that, it has mostly been partnering with corporates (about 90 of them) and is now morphing into a mobile-first company. The website is promoting the app to book Go-Jek’s services.

For each ride, Go-Jek gives away a free head cover and face mask to keep passengers’ heads clean and cool. For its courier service, the company lets users track its packages in real-time via smartphone apps. You can also ask Go-Jek to shop for and deliver anything below Rp 1 million (US$78).

Uber for motorcycles?

When opening the app for the first time, users will be prompted to register. In the homepage, users can choose one of Go-Jek’s three services. In each choice, users need to fill in information like the pick up address, delivery address, and pick up schedule. Afterwards, the app will show the price.

For payments, you can do it by cash, use Go-Jek’s credits, or a corporate pin (only for cooperating companies). Users can buy credit using bank transfer or by sharing their Go-Jek promotion code to friends. If a first time Go-Jek app user keys in your promo code, they will get Rp 25.000¹ in credit. And when they use Go-Jek’s service, you will get Rp 25.000² in credit.

Since the app is fairly new, there are still bugs to fix. For example, I can use my own promo code to get the free credit. I can’t arrange the pickup schedule on an LG Nexus 4, but the feature works just fine on a Samsung Galaxy S3.

Although Go-Jek’s app may not look as clean as Uber’s, it works well for people in Jakarta. And thanks to the heavy traffic in the city, Go-Jek can challenge Uber.

Go-Jek’s rivals in Jakarta include HandyMantis and Wheel Line. However, Go-Jek seems to be the only ojek startup with its own smartphone app.

In Vietnam, Grabtaxi is also trying to connect motorcycle riders using its taxi app. One day, the two services may clash head-to-head in Indonesia. And while there is no policy to regulate these motorcycle taxis in Indonesia, the government may want to do so if it becomes a lucrative business in the future.