Department of Land Transport tackles motorbike delivery boxes
With all of Thailand laser-focused on Covid-19 outbreaks, vaccine availability, and apparently Phuket has got some sort of brouhaha over some foreigners showing up, it’s easy to lose track of the important daily tribulations of keeping a country functioning. But never fear, there are those that don’t get distracted by the glitzy headlines and are doing the thankless work to keep Thailand chugging along in the background. While you were all preoccupied with sandboxes and syringes, the Department of Transport has quietly tackled the problem of unregulated and oversized delivery boxes on motorbikes plaguing the Kingdom today.
While it seems negligible, the pandemic has brought a massive increase in food delivery services throughout many parts of Thailand. Food delivery services have become an essential part of Covid-19 life with restaurants often constrained to take away orders only and warnings and restrictions against leaving your home unnecessarily being levied on and off throughout the pandemic. Logo-emblazoned motorbikes zooming around with delivery boxes full of hot meals for holed up residents are a common sight on the streets of Thai cities.
But in this lawless grey area, some delivery boxes have become too large or too long for motorbikes to be safely driven. And so this week, the director-general of the Department of Land Transport has put his foot down and declared that motorbike delivery boxes cannot exceed 60 centimetres in overall width and length.
Regulations have now been put in place that rear-mounted boxes must not extend more than 30 cm behind the body of the motorbike. Furthermore, side-mounted delivery boxes must be symmetrically mounted in the centre of the motorbike’s body to maintain balance. The attached boxes must not exceed 110 centimetres across and side-mounted delivery boxes must not have a height greater than 70 centimetres.
The main point of these regulations is to ensure the safety of delivery drivers and the other vehicles they interact with on the roads. Regulations include the stipulation that delivery boxes must not block visibility or any motorbike lights or turn signals in order to keep everyone safe. The director-general warns delivery business owners and motorbike drivers the measure their delivery boxes and get in line with new regulations before they officially become law soon.
Fines for a delivery box size or mounting regulation violation can be up to 1,000 baht. So the next time you put in a humungous food delivery order that your driver has to fit into their regulation size delivery box, maybe give them a tip?
SOURCE: The Pattaya News
