Local authorities are revved up to say “no go” to overseas visitors renting motorbikes and scooters on the Indonesian island of Bali after a rush of incidents involving tourists.
Bali’s governor Wayan Koster has asked national authorities to ban international travellers from hiring motorbikes and only allow tourists to rent cars from travel agents.
Mr Koster also urged travellers to only use transportation provided by travel agencies.
“So the tourists have to travel using cars from travel agents. They are no longer allowed to use motorbikes or anything that is not from a travel agent,” he told the ABC.
Tourism providers believe only a handful of international tourists are irresponsible riders and that a bike ban could harm Bali’s economy.
The crackdown comes after several incidents such as the abuse of police by tourists, failing to wear helmets and using fake number plates were recorded. Balinese authorities are also on the warpath about tourist etiquette, behaviour and appropriate attire.
The majority of these motorbike and scooter incidents involved Russian and Ukrainian travellers ignoring road rules and working illegally.
Mr Koster also called for all Russian and Ukrainian tourist visas to be revoked on arrival in Indonesia.
More than 77,500 Russians arrived in Indonesia between September 2022 and January 2023 as COVID-19 restrictions were eased, compared with about 88,000 during the same period in 2019.
About 8,800 Ukrainian visitors arrived in Indonesia between September 2022 and January 2023.
Bali scooter rental owner Agustinus Winjaya told the ABC that he supports the police in taking action against tourists who use motorbikes and are reckless on the road, “but the problem is actually not from the rental”.
“In my experience, foreign citizens are fine because they haven’t caused really significant problems. They will still pay for damages or other things.”
Via ABC News
