1. Limousine and metered taxies issue at Phuket International Airport seems to have lightened up as some limousine operators agreed to set up counters with metered taxi operators.

The agreement was reached during a meeting between limousine and metered taxi operators at Phuket International Airport on Friday. Chaired by the Under Secretary of the Governor’s Office Niwit Arunrat, it was agreed that both metered taxies and limousine operators will set up service counters together near the entrance of the terminal. They are allowed to have 3 cars waiting at a time. This however needs approval from the airport authority. On the limousine side, they agreed to modify 60 vehicles with a minimum of 2000cc giving service as metered taxies, to provide alternatives for passengers. It is expected to take one month before they can be operational. If things go as planned, there will be almost 200 metered taxies, limousines and minibuses offering services to passengers, sufficient for demand of 700 trips per day.

2. Electric run vehicles are introduced at Chalong pier.

These two electric run vehicles are being introduced by the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization or PPAO to provide transferal services for tourists at the Chalong pier in the south end of the island. The PPAO president Anchalee Vanit Theppabutra said the environmentally friendly vehicles are in line with Phuket as a tourist resort and also in response to fuel saving campaigns. The vehicles cost around 600,000 baht each. This Tuk Tuk, which is also non-polluting, is introduced as a pilot project and if works well, Khun Anchalee said it may be used in the city, along with the PPAO’s public buses, with limited speed to assure passengers of the highest safety.

from Andaman News TV11 Phuket, broadcast to Phang Nga, Krabi & Phuket + Radio Thailand FM90.5 Phuket, 8.30am Monday 9th January 2006 & http://www.thaisnews.com/show_eachnews.php...date=09-01-2006

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That's good news, it should make it cheaper to get to Patong, using the metered taxis