Phuket’s Patong taxi, tuk-tuk drivers win parking space reprieve

Premkamon Ketsara

 

 

PHUKET:-- Hundreds of Patong van, taxi and tuk-tuk drivers today (July 3) won their plea to at least delay the rolling out of the provincial government’s parking plan to slash the number of parking spaces occupied by the iconic vehicles along the streets of Phuket’s key tourism town.

 

The drivers massed at Phuket Provincial Hall this morning, with scores of their vehicles parked across the road at Sanaam Chai (Victory Field), to drive their point home and have the voices heard in a meeting inside Provincial Hall.

 

Present at the meeting were officers from the Royal Thai Army, Phuket Vice Governor Siwaporn Chuasawad and the newly installed Patong Police Chief Col Tassanai Orarigdech, as well as 27 other representatives from the various stakeholders.

 

Full Story: http://www.thephuketnews.com/phuket-patong-taxi-tuk-tuk-drivers-win-parking-space-reprieve-62821.php#CMXPimFxCzyebi8p.97

 

-- © Copyright Phuket News 2017-7-3

Mafia Mob Rules Yet Again ..... sigh sigh

The only way to achieve something is to not give in. If they threaten road blocks, use tanks.

They need pay 100 bht an hour for parking.That might smoke them out.

Arrest them all for gathering!

The issue really all goes back to town planning.

The  compulsory provision for adequate parking by developers and accommodation providers appears to remain  unaddressed by local government , but in reality it is a mandatory proviso of development approval and it is wanton corruption that sees parking spaces turned into 'bedroom space'.

In short the law says that for so many bedrooms a parking place will be allocated, but the council inspectors arrive , collect their One Off 'fee' and enforce nothing. So 60 rooms and not even a place for a minibus to pull into.

And  now staff and residents and guests have to park on the street.

Then  along comes the transport men , those who service , or more likely  take 'opportunity' with the buildings  guests , and of course , there is no provision for their parking either. So they 'make' themselves a place  on the street , sometimes with smiles and broken plastic chairs ...sometimes with threats of violence or vandalism .

In Karon for example , the Tuk Tuk mens vehicles take up most of the Beach rd. parking , and they've decided its "THEIR"  parking , even when its empty ! Dont you be silly enough to ignore their jeers  from across the road and park in those spots! Worse still is that the drivers have taken over the salas meant to provide shade for beach goers as their own private HQs.

And in other places they make rough shanties....all  have returned to the same spots they were previously run off by the army btw.

So to , have returned  the Beach rd. Patong rental men , who privatise public parking with their collection of rental motorbikes.

Its even happening with Tour Buses... there was an extra driving  lane put in last year on the southbound stretch from Patong to Karon. Within a week the buses and coach companies ( and  now a fleet of white Fortuners ) decided to make that lane THEIR overnight parking place , since the Hotels that so much need their services wont let them park on their premises , even if they do have the space!

So because of corrupt local government officers , and once again , woefully inadequate policing , Phuket has become a place where commercial enterprise greedily swallows up public assets as soon as they are provided.

But the TT and taxi  drivers , who virtually live at their commandeered spot , and who only take the most  limited of time to actually drive a customer somewhere , at about 5 times the rate they could charge in Bkk , have pretty much come to conclude that their spot  actually IS  theirs ,  and without army intervention will be near impossible to dislodge.

It's a shame that the ruling Army can't defeat a bunch of localized thugs.  Heaven forbid if a real foe wanted to take over the place.

1 hour ago, zaZa9 said:

The issue really all goes back to town planning.

The  compulsory provision for adequate parking by developers and accommodation providers appears to remain  unaddressed by local government , but in reality it is a mandatory proviso of development approval and it is wanton corruption that sees parking spaces turned into 'bedroom space'.

In short the law says that for so many bedrooms a parking place will be allocated, but the council inspectors arrive , collect their One Off 'fee' and enforce nothing. So 60 rooms and not even a place for a minibus to pull into.

And  now staff and residents and guests have to park on the street.

Then  along comes the transport men , those who service , or more likely  take 'opportunity' with the buildings  guests , and of course , there is no provision for their parking either. So they 'make' themselves a place  on the street , sometimes with smiles and broken plastic chairs ...sometimes with threats of violence or vandalism .

In Karon for example , the Tuk Tuk mens vehicles take up most of the Beach rd. parking , and they've decided its "THEIR"  parking , even when its empty ! Dont you be silly enough to ignore their jeers  from across the road and park in those spots! Worse still is that the drivers have taken over the salas meant to provide shade for beach goers as their own private HQs.

And in other places they make rough shanties....all  have returned to the same spots they were previously run off by the army btw.

So to , have returned  the Beach rd. Patong rental men , who privatise public parking with their collection of rental motorbikes.

Its even happening with Tour Buses... there was an extra driving  lane put in last year on the southbound stretch from Patong to Karon. Within a week the buses and coach companies ( and  now a fleet of white Fortuners ) decided to make that lane THEIR overnight parking place , since the Hotels that so much need their services wont let them park on their premises , even if they do have the space!

So because of corrupt local government officers , and once again , woefully inadequate policing , Phuket has become a place where commercial enterprise greedily swallows up public assets as soon as they are provided.

But the TT and taxi  drivers , who virtually live at their commandeered spot , and who only take the most  limited of time to actually drive a customer somewhere , at about 5 times the rate they could charge in Bkk , have pretty much come to conclude that their spot  actually IS  theirs ,  and without army intervention will be near impossible to dislodge.

 

I agree with every word.

 

The army should go back and clear our all these resurected taxi mafia salas. So so ugly ...

 

That line of minibuses should be cleared out the inside lane on the Patong/Karon road, and also the estate agent cars before them. If an accident happened and it was a farang parking ... OMG

Absolute bullshit.  These guys take all the parking in the area.  There is nearly no space left for anyone else to park.  The way things have been going the only thing the tuk tuks will be good for, is driving to the beach to go fishing to feed the family.  Tourists are declining at a rapid pace, business are closing left right and centre and many girls are either going home or moving to other places.  Keep going Patong, soon you will be nothing but a fishing village once again.

 

But there's no Mafia on the island...

3 hours ago, steelepulse said:

It's a shame that the ruling Army can't defeat a bunch of localized thugs.  Heaven forbid if a real foe wanted to take over the place.

The Thai military in recent times has had three battle strategies available for external adversaries. The latter two being the ones most popular.

1. Cut and run

2. Brief skirmish

3. Complete roll over

 

 

The above photo shows just some of the people responsible for giving this Island such a bad reputation.

22 hours ago, Phuketboy said:

Absolute bullshit.  These guys take all the parking in the area.  There is nearly no space left for anyone else to park.  The way things have been going the only thing the tuk tuks will be good for, is driving to the beach to go fishing to feed the family.  Tourists are declining at a rapid pace, business are closing left right and centre and many girls are either going home or moving to other places.  Keep going Patong, soon you will be nothing but a fishing village once again.

 

We can only hope so

As far as Phuket is concerned, the Army have little chance of changing things in the near future.

This meeting/protest/mafia style intimidation exercise would've been a perfect time for all our Phuket memebers to go park in the suddenly available parking spots  I'm sure the guy furthest right in the photo (the one with the happy demeanour) would've been thrilled when he returned to scamming...I mean..WORKING.

1 hour ago, SABloke said:

This meeting/protest/mafia style intimidation exercise would've been a perfect time for all our Phuket memebers to go park in the suddenly available parking spots  I'm sure the guy furthest right in the photo (the one with the happy demeanour) would've been thrilled when he returned to scamming...I mean..WORKING.

 

He and all the the others would at minimum let the air out of all the tyres, at worst slash all the tyres.

 

I speak with some personal experience on this point. Thugs ...

“Today, we stand united as more than hundred drivers to ask for kindness from the Phuket Provincial Office..."

 

What have these thugs and extortionists  ever done to deserve kindness from anyone? What nerve!!!

Isn't about time to stop with tuktuks on Phuket and come up with another transport system?tourists hate them but tourist zones are floated with them?200 bht for just 400 meter hello!

Isn't about time to stop with tuktuks on Phuket and come up with another transport system?tourists hate them but tourist zones are floated with them?200 bht for just 400 meter hello!

 

A little tram-bus that runs up and down the beach road for 20 baht a trip might be good for tourism. I'd definitely use it. :)

 

47 minutes ago, SABloke said:

 

A little tram-bus that runs up and down the beach road for 20 baht a trip might be good for tourism. I'd definitely use it. :)

 

Never ever going to happen. Too many parked tuktuks taking up one lane. 

 

3 hours ago, LivinginKata said:

Never ever going to happen. Too many parked tuktuks taking up one lane. 

 

It's a shame really. Whenever I go to Phuket I hire a car. It costs me on average about 1k - 2.5k a day (1 for sedan, 2.5 when family are visiting) all in and most days in the week I stay there I and my family just walk around the immediate vicinity of our hotel. Besides the initial trip from the airport and the final one back, we might all load in to the car perhaps twice. I still hire though, because the thought of having to indulge one of these <deleted> with a "debate" about transport is not worth it (and at the current airport transfer rate of some hotels I happily pay the extra money to go 400m with no headache) . If there was, however, a metered and/or comfortable public alternative I'd probably give up the wasted 5k for a parked rental car at the hotel.

Once again the mafia cheats and scammers, win!!...When will tourists understand and use other means of transport?...

 

But on the other hand, they [the tourists] don't give a damm...they are just there for a a few weeks or so...

Did they take a urine test before the meeting ?

I wonder how many people would still be attending ?

15 hours ago, observer90210 said:

Once again the mafia cheats and scammers, win!!...When will tourists understand and use other means of transport?...

 

But on the other hand, they [the tourists] don't give a damm...they are just there for a a few weeks or so...

Tourists do not like them.Do they have a choice?

what other means of transport?Patong.

47 minutes ago, Destiny1990 said:

Tourists do not like them.Do they have a choice?

what other means of transport?Patong.

Uber or Grab app's get you around I guess!

They all look like model citizens to me, bare the gloves, the rolled up shirts over the belly, the dark-shades and the shabby looks :)

1 hour ago, CantSpell said:

They all look like model citizens to me, bare the gloves, the rolled up shirts over the belly, the dark-shades and the shabby looks :)

When the only regulation is really "the baht", as in pay your monthly fee so you can dress and act however you see fit, this is what you get.  A cast of characters that look like they were recently released from the gray bar hotel.

3 hours ago, Destiny1990 said:

Tourists do not like them.Do they have a choice?

what other means of transport?Patong.

Tourists love them, just not the prices.

29 minutes ago, stevenl said:

Tourists love them, just not the prices.

Not true..

song teaws are liked tuktuks far from also its oversupply of parked tuktuks that makes people ev n more dislike them.example i never ride tuktuks still i hate them for being useless and taking up parking spaces

2 minutes ago, Destiny1990 said:

Not true..

song teaws are liked tuktuks far from also its oversupply of parked tuktuks that makes people ev n more dislike them.example i never ride tuktuks still i hate them for being useless and taking up parking spaces

The tourists I talk to on a daily basis like them, a Tuktuk ride is part of their Phuket experience.