While travelling on business and pleasure, I notice the taxi services in Jakarta are much nicer than the ones in KL. How so?
- I’ve never had to enter a taxi that didn’t use the meter when told to. This includes famous and non famous taxi brands. Try that in KL near a) KLCC b) Bukit Bintang c) Indonesian embassy. It’s at least RM10 to anywhere within spitting distance, exponential beyond that.
- I’ve never had to wait for a taxi. There are a whole mess around. Now, if we could flood KL with taxis, maybe the problems in a) would disappear…
- Taxis in Jakarta are bigger. The reputable ones use Toyotas, with plenty of leg room. In KL, the budget taxis are Proton Sagas. Not that I am complaining about the brand, but when the driver shoves his seat all the way back, there’s about an inch clearance between the back of his seat, and the edge of the back seat.
Why did this entry make it into an engineering blog? It’s a factor to consider when comparing the pros and cons of working in SEA.
Wata - Malaysian Oil and Gas Engineer 
Well said… Great information, keep up the great work!
do you know now the silver bird taxis are changing to Mercedes C class. same tariff. going from airport to town center is approx Rp100000 (approx RM35)