Tuk Tuks Now In England !

[atlastaname]

It may interest all those currently living in or planning to come to the UK soon , that as from next Monday 10th July 2006 , the streets of Brighton will be buzzing to the sound of Bangkok Tuk Tuks. The council has allowed gas powered (environmentally friendly) tuk tuks to offer an alternative to buses and taxis in this popular seafront town.

The company running them has said in todays local paper that they will operate between 8am and 2am every day of the year in Brighton picking up at regular stops . There will be a flat fare of £2.50 which is about half what a taxi would charge for a similar journey ( i think its actually a bit less than half given the alarming way our taxis tick over every few seconds ) .

I think this is really something and i will be amounst the first to try them out next week and let you know what i think. Won't be quite the same without the suffocating heat and pollution tho and i'm sure they won't be allowed to drive in the same crazy Bangkok way.

[Mossfinn]

Will the Brighton drivers have to go through the same rigorous training as the Bangers boys?!!!

Moss

[kayo]

good on them. We´ve got small ugly tuk-tuk´s here in guatemala but however ugly they are, they are the best!

[cuddleypete]

yes they are in brighton just seen on news,they are not like bkk ones thou ,but same idea and they run on gas,so not like bkk ones,so when stoped at light will not breath in fumes ,seeing them i like bkk ones better the noise and smell is good ,going back soon with wife can not wait ,and we will also go to brighton one day soon to try them as we live 1 hour away and will take photos to put here.

[kayo]

A bangers Tuk Tuk

A touristy tuk tuk in my TOWN Guatemala.

A country side standard tuk in thailand.

a country side standar tuk in Guate.

Ah... how that blue sky shines the same a million miles away.....

[atlastaname]

Kayo,

thanks for the photos .. very interesting comparisons . The Tuk Tuks to be used in Brighton are all painted different colours and there are , initially, going to be 12 of them. They have been , predictably, sanitised a little for use in the UK but are otherwise pleasingly similar to the real thing.

Although they are going "live" on Monday , for today , saturday and sunday they are cruising the streets of Brighton and can be hailed and used for FREE , assuming you can find one empty. !!

[mrbojangles]

This story is about 2 women driving a pink Tuk Tuk from Thailand to the UK for charity

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/5024812.stm

Piccie

And this is the story of the Tuk Tuk's in Brighton. Apparently imported from India, not Thailand.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-2257931,00.html

Piccie of the Brighton Tuk Tuk's

[tuky]

/moved to a more appropriate forum.

[Trebilcock]

Will the drivers in Brighton insist on a detour to their brother-in-law's jewellery shop?

[Trebilcock]

Whoops (double post)

Edited July 7, 2006 by Trebilcock

[Niloc]

If they are imported from India they are not Tuk Tuk's. They are 'Autos' and they just might have meters (which are always broken)!

[John_Betong]

More stuff on TukTuks in UK:

http://www.tuktuktours.co.uk/imports.htm

Our Customers

The first vehicle to be in service in the UK was in Bath. The Tuk-Tuk was licensed as a Private Hire vehicle by the local authority in July 2002 and is being used both for showing visitors around the city and for taxi work. The tuk-tuk is licensed to carry four passengers. Potential customers are welcome to contact Tuk Tuk Tours Javea

In January 2003 Lakeland local authority granted a Private Hire license to another of our customers:

[elkangorito]

yes they are in brighton just seen on news,they are not like bkk ones thou ,but same idea and they run on gas,so not like bkk ones,so when stoped at light will not breath in fumes ,seeing them i like bkk ones better the noise and smell is good ,going back soon with wife can not wait ,and we will also go to brighton one day soon to try them as we live 1 hour away and will take photos to put here.

I think you will find that most, if not all, BKK Tuk Tuk's run on LP Gas. The reason why they belch smoke is because they have 2 stroke engines, which require oil to be burnt in the combustion chamber.

For this reason, most 2 stroke petrol engines are high polluters. 2 stroke diesel engines are a different matter.

The only way for Tuk Tuk's to be low polluters is if they are fitted with a 4 stroke engine, preferably LP Gas powered.