Phuket crackdown on motorbike sidecars

PHUKET: Riders of motorcycles with sidecars (salaeng) will be prosecuted if they use the sidecar to carry passengers, the chief of the Phuket Land Transport Office (PTLO) has announced.

PTLO Chief Teerayout Prasertphol said that drivers who use salaeng for passenger transport do so illegally and present a danger to passengers and other road users.

Legally-registered salaeng can only be used to transport goods, he said.

Passenger transport by salaeng is prohibited under Section 14 of the Motor Vehicle Act of of 1979 and violators are subject to a maximum fine of 2,000 baht under Section 60 of the same act, he said.

In order to prevent the road accidents caused by salaeng and to protect the rights of operators of legally-registered vehicles, the PLTO is also asking motorbike owners not to illegally affix sidecars to vehicles, he said.

Owners of legally registered salaeng must not to use them for passenger transport.

The PTLO will prosecute violators, he warned.

The Gazette invites readers to send images of salaeng carrying passengers to: editor@phuketgazette.net