Big Changes Coming To Bali Airport Taxi System For Tourist Arrivals

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Following a brawl at the arrival pick-up area outside I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport on Sunday, 27th October, airport management has swiftly implemented a series of solutions to prevent such an incident from happening again.

The management team at Bali’s I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport has apologized to anyone who observed or was affected by the brawl on Sunday afternoon.

Airport management has said that the brawl broke out after airport security staff worked to move a group of illegal taxi drivers away from the main pick-up area and out of the designated pick-up lanes for vehicles during a time of peak crowding. 

The dynamics between different taxi providers in Bali have been a point of contention for many years, with online taxi providers often clashing with locally owned private taxi firms and independent drivers.

While issues have quietened down in recent month, Sunday night’s clash suggested that the tensions remain bubbling away beneath the surface.

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Speaking to reporters, the General Manager of I Gusti Ngurah Rai Airport, Bali, Ahmad Syaugi Shahab, explained, “Given the fairly dense situation and indications of the presence of [taxi drivers] other than our business partners there, the incident occurred. What we did in the field was to mediate.”

He confirmed that a mediation meeting has now been held, and solutions will be implemented as soon as possible. Shahab explained, “All parties understand this situation and are committed to jointly advancing Bali tourism in a better direction. This is to make a positive impression on tourists.”

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Shahab confirmed that a dedicated counter will be installed for airport pick-up outside the main arrivals door. This, all hope will help streamline arrivals into set funnels, allowing those who have already pre-arranged pick-up to find their driver and for those seeking a driver to be able to book a ride without being hassled.

Shahab added, “After the meeting, we and our business partners reviewed the location where the counter was planned to be placed.”

@kyu00055 Finally hello bali 😍🛬 #bali #ngurahraiinternationalairport #citlink #holiday ♬ Landing di Bali – Faizal Maulana

Over the years, thousands of tourists have noted how frantic the arrivals area of Bali Airport can be.

With many drivers calling out the names of their pre-booked clients and the independent taxi drivers offering rides to tourists who haven’t made bookings prior while many new arrivals are still looking at their phones, getting their bearing’s or looking to book an online taxi, the whole area becomes quite frenetic and bustling very quickly. 

Airport management has also confirmed that they will continue to evaluate the flow of passengers throughout the arrivals process to help create a more organized pick-up system, reduce crowd congestion, and create an arrivals experience that is as stress-free as possible for tourists.

Shahab concluded, “We ask for support from all parties; hopefully, in the near future, there will be steps of improvement that can be implemented immediately. We express our gratitude for all suggestions and input for improving services in the future.”

Though Sunday night’s altercation has fast-tracked the improvements, it makes sense that airport management would now start to focus on the second half of the arrivals process.

Over the last year, immigration and airport management have worked together to implement solutions that help streamline the arrivals process for tourists and cut queue times.

This has included the promotion of the e-visa on arrival and other e-visa categories that allow tourists to touch down in Indonesia with their visa pre-approved and the installation of new autogate technology. 

The autogate technology enables arrivals to complete immigration checks in just a matter of seconds and has helped considerably reduce queue times at I Gusti Ngurah Rai International Airport.

Indonesia’s Directorate General of Immigration has allowed relaxed a list of top tips to help tourists use the autogates correctly and keep everyone moving through the airport smoothly.