Sleeping Phuket taxi driver legal, official confirms 

Yutthawat Lekmak

 

Taxi driver Theerapol Seewan, 31, slammed into the footbridge pillar after falling asleep at the wheel. Photo: Eakkapop Thongtub

 

PHUKET: Officials have confirmed that the driver of a Phuket taxi who fell asleep at the wheel and crashed into the pillar of a pedestrian footbridge on Thepkrasattri Rd on Monday morning, injuring himself and his two Chinese tourist passengers, was not the registered owner of the vehicle but was legally driving the vehicle.

 

Lt Sunan Petchnoo of the Thalang Police was informed of the accident, in front of Muang Thalang School on Thepkrasattri Rd northbound, at 4am on Monday.

 

Police arrived at the scene with Kusoldharm rescue workers to find a gold-coloured “green-plate*” Toyota Altis taxi smashed into the base of a footbridge pillar.

 

Three injured people were still at the scene when police arrived. They were named as taxi driver Theerapol Seewan, 31, from Prachinburi, and his two passengers, Chinese tourists Mr Ruan Huiqiang, 22, who had suffered injures to his chest and Miss Ying Leyan, 22, who suffered injuries to her head.

 

All three were taken to Thalang Hospital for treatment. (See story here.)

 

However, the driver named in the police report, Mr Theerapol, was not the same person named on the registered taxi, as required by law.

The name on the taxi was Tammarong Chuwyoaksr.

 

As per laws introduced in 2012, the name of the registered owner of the vehicle must be shown on the vehicle. The name must be shown along with the complaints hotline number 1584.

 

Full story: http://www.thephuketnews.com/sleeping-phuket-taxi-driver-legal-official-confirms-61158.php#mveDJIBV16UziJC2.97

 

 

-- © Copyright Phuket News 2017-02-25

 

 

Whatever the verdict, he was never going to lose any sleep over it ! 

2 hours ago, NamKangMan said:

I don't know about the Russians, but I know of a few guest house owners that pick up their customers from the airport. 

 

Basically, performing airport transports, and they are driving the car. Whether the pick up / drop off be complimentary, or paid, they are still transporting tourists, for either direct, or indirect, payment. 

 

Also, part of the "service" for staying, includes to and from transport for Bangla Road.

It's becoming increasingly difficult for regular taxi drivers to pick customers up at the airport, such are the current rules and regulations, let alone a farang.

 

It's possible if you know the guest, so you don't need a sign, you can get them as "friends" but anything else is difficult and ill-advised.

Off topic trolling and bickering posts and replies have been removed. 

It's all good.... he was legal... thats a relief!

Im not sure its legal to drive a vehicle while sleeping

21 hours ago, rooster59 said:

However, the driver named in the police report, Mr Theerapol, was not the same person named on the registered taxi, as required by law.

I don't know what the law is here, and it seems as if they've whitewashed a breach anyway.

Where I come from, the driver MUST display his picture ID, with taxi registration number, in plain sight. At late night, some female passengers, as a matter of course, will photograph that ID and sms it to a friend as a type of insurance against would be rapists and the like.

Even Pattaya baht buses have the photo of the driver on display.