Bali’s Regional House of Representatives together with the Provincial Government have begun drafting a Regional Regulation concerning the Implementation of Special Rental Transportation.
This proposed regulation is an initiative of the Regional House of Representatives, arising as a response to demands from the Bali Tourism Drivers’ Struggle Forum, which has staged several protests.
One of the main demands among six points presented is to restrict the recruitment of tourism drivers, including online motorcycle taxi drivers, exclusively to residents holding Bali identity cards.
Additionally, they requested that tourism vehicles be required to use DK license plates.
Government Response and Training Initiatives
However, Bali Deputy Governor I Nyoman Giri Prasta stressed that “We will not look at the Bali ID cards or other things. What’s important is that they are integrated into the system, and there will be no discrimination,” he said after attending a plenary meeting at the Bali Regional House of Representative, Monday (September 8, 2025).
According to Giri Prasta, the management of tourism transportation is under the authority of the central government, so local regulations must align with national rules.
Nevertheless, he emphasized the importance of tourism drivers having a good understanding of service, safety, and Balinese culture.
To that end, drivers will receive special training from the Bali Provincial Transportation Agency to ensure optimal service for tourists.
“Tourism drivers only need to receive training or education from the Bali Provincial Transportation Agency in collaboration with related stakeholders,” explained Giri Prasta as quoted from SuaraBali.
“To gain training on understanding Balinese culture, tourism service ethics, safety, and traffic order,” he added.
Prevent Unfair Competition
Furthermore, Giri Prasta proposed minimum service standards for the Implementation of Special Rental Transportation, supervision of the use of official vehicle labels “Kreta Bali Smita,” and protection for local businesses to prevent unfair competition.
More broadly, the Deputy Governor openly supported and appreciated the regional House’s initiative draft regulation governing the Implementation of App-Based Special Rental Transportation Services in Bali.
He described this step as very appropriate because it accommodates the needs and expectations of drivers in Bali while ensuring that Balinese people become masters in their own house.
“This is how we comprehensively help our friends, the drivers in Bali,” he said in an interview after the plenary meeting at the Governor’s Office.
Giri Prasta also expressed gratitude to the Regional House for initiating the regulation as a concrete form of law enforcement.
“With this regulation, we will ensure that everything complies with laws and does not contradict higher regulations. Our only hope is that our people can become masters in their own house. If necessary, we will create a special application,” explained the two-term former Badung Regent.
He also urged the Regional House, through its leadership and Special Committee, to continue gathering input from various stakeholders to ensure the regulation truly fits all parties’ needs.
Clear Fares for Tourists
Support for the regulation also came from Bali Governor Wayan Koster, whose statement was read by Deputy Governor Giri Prasta. Governor Koster sees app-based special rental transportation services as an essential necessity in Bali due to the rapid growth of tourism.
According to the Governor, information technology provides a convenient service that is safe, comfortable, and offers clear fares for tourists.
However, the existence of online services also creates problems, such as the use of vehicles with out-of-area license plates without permits, unfair competition, and the lack of standardized tourism transportation services aligned with Bali’s characteristics.
Therefore, Koster argued that regulation is needed to protect local business actors and uphold Balinese cultural values.
He also gave technical and substantive suggestions, such as requiring special rental transportation to be operated by Indonesian legal entities to ensure professionalism and legal certainty, while considering the implications on vehicle ownership schemes.
The Governor further emphasized that the issuance of permits and technical/administrative verification for public and tourism transportation remain the authority of the central government, so this regional draft regulation should not eliminate or replace central government authority.
The Bali Provincial Government’s role is limited to coaching, supervising, and controlling transportation services in the field, including ensuring service standards in accordance with Balinese cultural values and maintaining tourism service quality.
“We are also focused on supervising and coaching business actors as well as following up on public complaints,” he added while affirming the commitment to enforce the official “Kreta Bali Smita” vehicle labels and protect local businesses from unfair competition.
Competency Scheme Not Available
Regarding the requirements for tourism drivers, the Governor agreed with the obligation to have competency certificates that cover understanding Balinese culture, service ethics, safety, and traffic order.
However, he suggested removing the word “competency” because a tourism driver competency scheme is not yet available at the Professional Certification Institute.
“So tourism drivers only need to receive training/education from the Bali Provincial Transportation Agency in cooperation with related stakeholders,” he explained.
In the same occasion, Governor Koster also addressed the Draft Regional Regulation on Public Information Disclosure.
He emphasized the importance of information transparency as a pillar of good governance, strengthening the institution of Information and Documentation Management Officers across all regional apparatuses, including technical guidelines, coordination mechanisms, and information technology utilization.
This regulation is also expected to guarantee the public’s right to receive information quickly and accurately, and encourage increased public literacy in using information wisely and productively.
For the improvement of the draft, the Governor suggested aligning it with national regulations and legal developments, while considering budget, human resources, digital infrastructure, and strengthening the Regional Information Commission to minimize and resolve public information disputes.
“This draft regulation must guarantee the rights of the public to obtain public information quickly, accurately, easily, and validly, and must also pay attention to and protect people with disabilities,” he concluded.
Meanwhile, Chairman of Bali Regional House of Representatives, Dewa Made Mahayadnya stated that this initiative draft regulation was born as a response to the aspirations of Bali drivers. He hopes all local parliament members will support this draft to produce the best regulation according to drivers’ demands.