"Subarus"

[ncr]

What exactly are these???

Taksin Road blocked by bus protest (http://www.manager.co.th/IHT/ViewNews.aspx?NewsID=9490000108197) - ThaiDay, 25 August 2006 01:13

Nearly 300 small buses operated by private firms under concessions from the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) gathered on Taksin Road around the Wong Wian Yai roundabout in Thon Buri Wednesday night to protest against public transport vehicles locally known as “Subarus” operating on their routes. The outsourced BMTA operators, who claim to be losing income because the smaller vehicles are stealing their passengers, want the Transport Ministry to ban other operators from running vehicles on their routes.

The blockade of buses, that left only one out of four lanes open to traffic, dispersed early yesterday morning after caretaker Deputy Transport Minister Gen Chainant Charoensiri promised that the ministry would reroute the Subarus by the end of next month. In response to the concession operators complaint that the police have failed to take action against the illegal operators, the minister said he would urge the police to take action.

According to the Deputy Transport Minister, some 4,000 Subarus are operating on 73 routes throughout Bangkok. Most are licensed to do so, though only on small streets and sois. However, about 1,100 vehicles are thought to be carrying passengers illegally.

Meanwhile, Land Transport Department Director-General Piyaphan Champasut said the authority has already finished reorganizing the operating routes of Subarus to prevent them from running on the same roads as BMTA buses. He added that the department had already asked the police to take action against illegal Subaru operators and had provided police with information that would enable them to begin prosecuting illegal operators anytime after August 1.

[Yappofloyd]

Khun ncr, these are the group taxis (almost like a larger four wheel tuk tuk that can hold up to 6 pax or 10 kids) which ply various short routes around Bangkok. The Wong Wian Yai bus operators seem to be particulalry unhappy as I can remember, when I was last in Bangkok in late April/early May, that they had a similar protest which shutdown the whole area.

BMTA/ Dept Transport introduced more stringent licensing of the these taxis and minivans in late 2003 and early 2004 as there were so many unlicnsed operators. However, the bus operators have reasonable complaints as many group taxis ply the same routes as popular (or heavily patronised) bus routes and use official bus tops. Especially on the Thjonburi side. Often, when I have been waiting for a bus and a group taxi/ minivan stops in the bus stop for one person to get in or out whilst holding up a number of buses.

But of course taxis, BMWs and everyone and their dog seems to think that it is their right to stop in a bus stop and hold up bus traffic!

[ncr]

Khun ncr, these are the group taxis (almost like a larger four wheel tuk tuk that can hold up to 6 pax or 10 kids)You mean mini-truck songthaews? Cannot recall ever seeing them in Bangkok, only in places like Lopburi or Chanthaburi (where they are a local tuk-tuk variant).

[Yappofloyd]

^ ncr, no I am not referring to songthaews which are obviously in usage pretty much in every city & major town outside of Bangkok (north, south, east and west).

It is a smaller 4 wheel vehicle with a low roof (I often have to bend my neck forward when sitting) and you enter from the side.

They operate in such palces as Suk soi 39, Th. Chok Chai 4 (Lat Prao)and a lot of the Thonburi side like Rama II, Th. Suk Sawat, Th Ekkacahi, Th Thoet Thai to name but a few (at least these are the ones I can remmeber from ehre in Darfur!). They are more common south and west of Wong Wian Yai and along the bus routes which is why the bus operators are not happy.

I have never really checked what type of vehicle they are but they are about the size of a small subaru so perhaps they are mostly subarus.

[ncr]

Khun Yappofloyd,

...a-ha. But maybe we actually meant the same thing.

So how's the weather over there in Darfur? :)

[The Enforcer!]

Of course, these 300 drivers missed one vital point ....

If they provided a good service then people would not decide to use the “Subarus” instead!

The Enforcer!

[Yappofloyd]

Khun Yappofloyd,

...a-ha. But maybe we actually meant the same thing.

So how's the weather over there in Darfur? :)

Khun ncr, actually I think not..... I understand a songthaews to be a transport vehicle commonly in use in 'up-country' locations. You enter and exit from the back unless you get a seat with the driver. They comfortably sit 12 people but often can pack 20 or more with school kids and hangers on. Of course, we all have jumped on many a songthaew over the years in various places around Thailand.

However, for the "subarus" or 'mini-taxis' (which is how the Bkk Post described them the other day) it is a smaller vehicle with a lower roof and typically you enter from the side and you sit facing either in the direction of the front of the vehcile or facing backwards. Generally sit about 6 people.

Perhaps they actually have the same name as songthaews but there are much smaller. I'm sure that someone will post a photo or make a clear description than mine.

As for the weather in Darfur it is about 45 degrees every day, the food is terrible and it is wet season which means lots of quick floods (similar to SE asia rains) disrupting the ability to move around. (However this is at least resulting in a reduction of the amount of people being shot dead or attacked each day!) Similar to the violebnce in Afghanistan and south of thailand that the weather plays a factor in the incidence of attacks against civilians.

[Parinand]

I'd like to call these kind of Subaru/Daihatsu vehicles "pick-up minibuses", as they are converted from pick-up trucks. You can find them in some areas of Bangkok--especially in the sois. In Hat Yai, they are called "tuk-tuk", used as shared-ride taxi within city limit. Some are on fixed-routes to suburban destinations like PSU (Prince of Songkla University), but the routes are more flexible than regular fixed-route buses. They can divert off the route to drop off passengers, given that it is not too far from the route--thus providing a "paratransit" service.

[ncr]

You mean mini-truck songthaews? Cannot recall ever seeing them in Bangkok, only in places like Lopburi or Chanthaburi (where they are a local tuk-tuk variant).
I'd like to call these kind of Subaru/Daihatsu vehicles "pick-up minibuses", as they are converted from pick-up trucks. You can find them in some areas of Bangkok--especially in the sois. In Hat Yai, they are called "tuk-tuk", used as shared-ride taxi within city limit. Some are on fixed-routes to suburban destinations like PSU (Prince of Songkla University), but the routes are more flexible than regular fixed-route buses. They can divert off the route to drop off passengers, given that it is not too far from the route--thus providing a "paratransit" service.I meant something like this (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZ8reFsNduw&mode=related&search=). But you still seem to have something different in mind (as the vehicles in the video are entered from the back), Khun Yappofloyd?

[GWR]

Thanks for pushing the video report idea one step further, with this search retrieved video of Hat-Yai. The video started off on Saneh Anusorn Road, where some of the bombs went off. It passed Lee Gardens Plaza, turned left and crossed Niphat Uthit 3

[pong]

yes, theyre VERY widespread EVERYwhere now in Thonburi, and @ just (still) 5 bt/ride, theyre now also a lot cheaper as the buses (Thonburi hardly has red buses, mainly white 'rot ruam' @ 8 bt/fare= imagine a poor family with 2 schoolgoing kids: thats 20 or 32 bt/day expense. However, they mainly aim shoppers in the may BigC/Carfr etc. Routes are numbered, but rather confusingly. hey also seem to slowly taking over (due to much higher frequency and more direct routing) many of the former red songhthaew routes shuttling down longer sois, officialy numbered in the 14xx series BMTA.
They definitely look more like a slightly larger tuktuk. Small JPNese vans/rebuilts, run on gas. But a fast ride in them on say Ram2 road is rather hair-rasing (all open, etc.)