The Development Of IKN Is Boosting Growth For Car Rental Businesses

Dok/Asperda Kaltim

The Development Of IKN Is Boosting Growth For Car Rental Businesses

Thursday, 29 Aug 2024

Car rental businesses in East Kalimantan are really feeling the positive effects of the IKN development. Ever since the project kicked off, bookings for cars have shot up. The peak came during the 79th anniversary of Indonesia's independence. There was a huge spike in rental requests starting August 12, 2024, when 38 governors were invited by the President to visit the new capital, Nusantara. Danum Kiswanto, the head of the East Kalimantan branch of the Indonesian Car Rental Business Association (Asperda), mentioned that the demand for rentals surged a week before the independence day celebration. "We had requests for over 1,000 vehicles, but we didn’t have that many available, so we had to source some from elsewhere," Danum explained. At that time, they could only provide 100 cars, so Danum coordinated with other rental businesses to meet the demand. The cars were mainly needed for pickups in Balikpapan to transport guests to Nusantara in Penajam Paser Utara. "We managed to provide 100 cars, and some even had to be brought in from Java," he added. Thanks to this increase, Danum and several other rental operators saw profits soar by over 100%. Even though they were just handling pickups in Balikpapan to take guests to Batakan Stadium, the economic impact of the IKN development was clear. "The demand was significant because hundreds of mayors and regents were also invited to IKN. We arranged pickups from hotels to take them to Batakan," he noted. Danum acknowledged that the 79th independence day event at IKN really boosted the car rental business compared to regular days. He hopes that the IKN development will also lead to increased rental revenues. Ultimately, Danum wishes for the IKN project to positively impact the tourism sector, especially in East Kalimantan. "The people of East Kalimantan are supportive and proud if the IKN development continues for the betterment of the community," he concluded.