Chasing Cars, mid-Feb 10

Ferry cross the Mekong. Phnom Penh in the background.

After a longer hiatus waiting for inspiration, a run of the mill entry. Or so it would seem.

• How the government works (or not). PM calls minister 'gang minister' Why?

  '... the senior official changed the number of National Road 67 to 66, creating cartographic confusion.
  ...
  I beg you, stop changing the road numbers,” Hun Sen said, adding that the minister was behaving like a gangster by changing numbers without consulting the proper authorities. “I announce today to cancel this and keep 67 as its number,” Hun Sen [Cambo PM] said'.

• More on the government machine. PM calls for action. Province promises. Sets date. Finds out they are too busy. Postpones and starts just in time for the Chinese New Year when Crossing Cambodia believes there are neither police nor trucks driving around to apprehend. That's the easy part, but the main part is to apprehend trucks carrying too much. So how they do it?

  'Officials have not identified a specific weight limit for trucks, saying instead that individual police officers would be tasked with determining which ones were overloaded and could potentially damage roads'.

  So arbitrarily imposing non specific limits means ....

• What about pedestrians? They need clear paths, preferably shaded. In Kampot the one means none of the other, i.e. they cut down the trees to remove the obstacles. Stan writes a letter to the editor of the Phnom Penh Post:

  'While I support the improvements to the sidewalks on the business side of Kampot River Road for safety and aesthetics, I believe authorities should go to great lengths to save every tree possible.
  The shade and beauty they provide are far more important than the slight obstacle to walking they might cause.
  Furthermore, it’s ironic that they would put so much effort into making the walk along the riverfront safe at the same time as they are widening streets in another part of town adjacent to the market and nearly eliminating sidewalks in the process; there will be no possibility of avoiding walking in traffic there. It’s not just tourists who deserve safe places to walk. The streets in question are now far wider than traffic flows would ever warrant for a small town, and cost a lot more than necessary.
  One was already paved and functional. Meanwhile, River Road north of the new bridge, the road to my house, is a very rough dirt track with immense holes in it and desperately needs improvement. Even just grading would be an important benefit to users. The authorities have their priorities askew. There needs to be a way to solicit input before such projects are undertaken'.

• And more government. Build an airport and the passengers will come. But that would be a success and success needs a celebration, so we postpone the inauguration until then, meaning that an airport is built but not opened. Understood? Even weirder is this:
  

  'It is hoped that new national carrier Cambodia Angkor Air will run the first flights at the new airport, said Tith Chantha, adding that he would like SIA to become Cambodia’s primary international airport'.

  So even the government can not force it's own airline to behave it self and do as it's told?
  

• Well, the government wants to approve a monopoly for a single Toyota dealer. But this is what Toyota want, so as to better control their produce and ease of calling back ... So why the fuss?

• More monopoly business. Find an idea (cutting out 'anarchy') and get it done. And the money will flow freely:

  'A group of boat owners is preparing to lodge a complaint against a new association that was created to streamline the booking of trips on the Tonle Sap, accusing it of cutting off direct access to customers and charging unnecessarily high fees'.

  Let the passengers pay for ..., well for nothing.

• Meanwhile in an unassumingly unrelated incident an overcrowded boat sinks and kills seven. Now shouldn't anything be done about that? The Ministry of Water Resources washes it's hands off the case:

  'He [MoWR spokesperson] said that the ministry would resume a public-awareness campaign about water safety and urged people to follow the advice given.
  “The ministry often used to inform people and publicise warnings for all boat drivers along the Mekong River and the sea to be equipped with life vests to protect their lives from disasters, but people have ignored these warnings,” he said'.

  Warnings and implementing the law.
  

• More than 14,000 were fined for not wearing a helmet in January according to official sources. That must have resulted in quite a windfall. And then there's the unofficial fines ..., so no doubt the traffic police have got something to celebrate.

  'But road safety advocates say the effectiveness of the law has been hindered by spotty enforcement, a problem that persists in part because Traffic Police rarely work at night.
  ...
  “Ninety percent of people use helmets during the day, but only around 40 percent wear helmets at night,” Him Yan [director of the ministry’s Department of Public Order!] said. “People are afraid that police will fine them, but they don’t wear them at night because Traffic Police do not work then.”'

• Chinese New Year means more accidents, so it seems. The solution:

  '“I have informed all Traffic Police in the different provinces to reinforce the law during Chinese New Year because many people leave the city to travel to the provinces,” he [director of the Ministry’s Department of Public Order!] said'.

  But now the Chinese New Year has passed (Phnom Penh Post, 18 Feb 2010) the police are celebrating:

  'the number of people who died on the road over the period matched last year’s figure, the overall number of accidents saw a decline'.

  Funny though, that the first article refers to HIB statistics which mention five times as many deaths as the police. So will the after Chinese New Year figures also be adjusted?

• Flights increase between PPN and SRP from 4 to 5 daily.

• Finally let's end with an article on how the government works. There's a law. But who cares? The opposition do. Cars with military license are not allowed.

  'He [MoD spokesperson] added that opposition lawmakers were not objecting to the use of military or police number plates by those entitled to apply for them and suggested that legitimate plate holders should paint their vehicles in military colours to help people determine which licences were legal and which ones were not.
  Chhum Socheat [opposition spokesperson] said that the 2007 law does include such a provision but that it was rarely implemented or enforced. “It is not a problem if legitimate plate owners do not spray [their vehicles] with military colours,” he said'.

  Despite the MoD defense, the Cambodia Mirror adds:

  '“Though there is such a claim from the Ministry of Defense, many citizens said that many cars of powerful officials are parked illegally and they do not obey the traffic law.”'

Chasing Cars, the wet edition

Some torrential down pours this week. This lead to a first feature:

• Vuthasurf describes what happens when the heavens open themselves. The consequences are
  a. everybody waits til the rain is over.
  b. the streets flood
  c. once drier everybody simultaneously decides to hit the flooded streets.
  
  And then?

  'During the rain, the drivers of cars and motorbikes rarely respect the traffic light.... While I reached the traffic light, the large number of motorbikes, cars, and trucks close together and unable to move or moving very slowly in the middle of street'.

  And the traffic police:

  'While during the chaos in the street, I did not see the traffic police officers at the sense in order to help ease the trouble of the traffic'.

  That about sums up this week. Rain, traffic jams and incompetence. Incompetence? Surely not!
  
  Just yesterday on a stretch of Sihanouk Boulevard two squads of 8 police men each trying to apprehend everything evil passing, which seems to be everything with a motor and on two wheels. They were positioned on 2 busy intersections. Due to some poor macro-economic planning from Cambodia's chief of staff my journey coincided with a power cut rendering the brand new set of traffic lights useless. So traffic snarls up. And what do the police do? Nada! Not their problem.
  

• The blame game continues, now (IRIN reports) the traffic deaths are due to 'rapid urbanization', as if safety issues are non-achievable. If this were the case then the most urban of countries would have the highest number of deaths, but that's not the case.

  'But even better roads create other problems, Duly [road safety adviser for Handicap International Belgium]contends.
  “Now people have wider, paved roads right outside the city, and they go even faster,” he told IRIN. “Speeding accounts for half of all fatalities.” Alleviating the number of fatalities, said Duly, means educating the population about road safety and encouraging police to enforce traffic laws.
  
  Another priority is making sure the Ministry of Public Works and Transport has the capacity to gather and analyse traffic data. Handicap International gave more than 100 GPS detectors and data-gathering tools to the police to improve the mapping of accident trends.
  
  “It's very important they have these tools to look at accidents,” said Sem Panhavuth, who manages road safety data for Handicap International. “So far they haven't been able to analyse much where accidents are happening or where they might occur.”'

  So clearly HIB doubt whether the traffic police can add up. Instead they even need GPS to note the places where accidents happens. What happened to old-fashion methods of reporting where the accident took place and putting pins on a map. You could even digitize the reports, but all can be done without GPS. Wasting money?
  Then the reality:

  'Cambodian police officers regularly abuse traffic laws in favour of government and business elites, drivers claim.
  
  “Any time there's a motorbike or car accident, the more powerful person gets his way,” said Sok Chesda, a motorbike taxi driver in Phnom Penh. “Usually we don't even call the police, but just leave the scene if a rich person hits us, even if they are at fault.”
  
  When a traffic accident means injury or damage to a vehicle, the two sides negotiate a price and settle on who should pay — usually the party with fewer government connections, a group of taxi drivers said.
  
  Police in Phnom Penh are, nonetheless, minimally involved in traffic enforcement. Instead of enforcing crucial laws against speeding, drunk driving, or wearing helmets, they focus on “easier” regulations like rear-view mirrors and licence plates, Duly said.
  
  “It's good they're enforcing those types of laws too, but we're really urging them to recognise the importance of stopping speeders and drunk drivers.”
  
  However, according to Sok: “If the police stop me for speeding or anything, I'll just give them 2,000 riels [US$0.50] and continue driving,” he said.'

  Just yesterday a person Crossing Cambodia knows was asked to pay 50$ for no apparent infringement!
  

• Then again it's not always clear how traffic safety issues work. From the NZ Herald no less, an image of Thailand:
  
  
• A couple of weeks ago, a mention of a Phnom Penh cyclists club, this time a Vespa scooter club. Sopach adds an up date. The objective: '

  'To travel countryside and to make friends'.

  Accompanied by Vespa mechanic!

• And what's the reality out of PP? Kampuchea Crossings (like the name) highlight the lack of development in Kampot province.
  

Chasing Cars, 6 September, 2008

Is there much to mention? Not really.

For those of you paying attention to your fellow road users, you may have noticed this week how wearing a helmet and having mirrors on your moto has suddenly become popular. Earlier in the week, helmet wearing percentages were roughly 10 - 20%, by yesterday these have shot up to 40-50%. The same applies for mirrors, from a hardly noticeable 5-10%, yesterdays numbers were 40-50%. At the same time, police razzia's haven't increased much, so possibly our fellow-moto's know something we ignorants don't?

Then again in the past we've seen these percentages spike, only to drop a few weeks later, when the police are up to something more interesting.

• The previously mentioned taxi service is getting off to a good start, so writes Cambodge Soir (16 August, where has CC been?):

  'The Sino-Khmer joint venture is transporting between 200 and 300 customers a day'.

  For just 12 cars, that means 15-25 customers per day, certainly encouraging. Luckily the article also clarifies what a taxi service is:
  

  'This taxi company is a Sino-Khmer joint venture. Its particularity: each vehicle is equipped with a taxi meter'.

  And then a free philosophical questions as final statement:

  'It is now the question whether this company will succeed. Six months ago, a Vietnamese company offering a similar service closed down. A few years ago, the public bus service launched by the government ended as a total failure. A sign of how difficult it is for the Cambodians to change their transportation habits. Indeed, how can one compete against the string of motodops and tuk-tuks which are available at every street corner?'

• Khmer 440 is always on top of everything topical: servicing waterlogged moto's

  'I went home and street 13 was so flooded my bike got submerged'.

  A sign of the times?

• As if Thailand isn't falling apart already some sneaky figures have been carting off some of Thailand's best moto's to .... Cambodia! Hardly newsworthy, but Thai police with nothing else to do have been putting a halt to this. Tough luck Cambodia.

• Last week we focused on an imaginative tale published in Thailand, this week's fairy tale comes from the US. Once upon a time there was ... Sihanoukville:

  Australian-owned guesthouses line its streets'

  Then Phnom Penh:

  'Muddy Toyota Land Cruisers with Croix Rouge [Red Cross] logos have morphed into Lexus SUVs. Thai-style tuk-tuks - three-wheeled open taxis - have invaded. Ambitious office buildings are being added to the skyline'.

  Office buildings? Where? Thai-style tuk-tuks? The PP tuk-tuks are inherently Cambo-bred.
  Going to Kep?

  'The route through Phnom Penh's dusty suburbs, past garment factories and swarms of Khmer schoolchildren in uniform, seemed to take forever. But we eventually wound south on two-lane National Route 3, traversing the monotone Cambodian plain. Only as the temperature dipped and we approached the coastal mountains did the scenery gain intrigue, just as the paved road ended for a bone-jarring 20-mile-drive to the outskirts of Kep'.
  

  As compared to

  'Bokor Hill Station, perched at an elevation of 3,500 feet at the end of a bone-jarring 26-mile ride'.
  

  Basically if you read this article, do you recognize it? Or has some editor brought in some 'finishing' touches?

Has anyone noticed that street 51 is disappearing before our eyes? Beware of the stick!(Near Elsewhere)

The place to be? 'The Place' a posh new fitness / Chinese restaurant / sky bar / dentist (the latter is just a rumour) has opened up just beyond Independence monument on Sihanouk Blvd. Despite claims that it's the place to be, the owners are either expecting tough times or are ignorant, as they have only 6 parking spots. Let's see how they tackle this.

Chasing Cars, Back to work after Khmer New year

Yes, it's back to the organized chaos called Phnom Penh. Can chaos be organized? Time to get used to non-working traffic lights, absence of foot paths, inconsiderate drivers, anarchy, lazy traffic police, useless new plans to stem the adversity of growth, etc., etc. But what has happened in the meantime?

The Khmer New Year leads to some different types of traffic news, i.e. how many road deaths and how to get to ... / how is this or that road?

• Starting with the former, over at Khmer 440, a discussion on the road to Bokor mountain. On 17 April:

  'As an update, the road up Bokor remains closed except for group trips organized by local operators such as Sok Lim tours. As mentioned in other topics, the road was opened to all during Chinese New Year. I had hoped that the same would happen during Khmer New Year and I confirmed with a local source that this was indeed the case.
  However, when I visited on 2 separate days during Khmer New Year on a dirt bike, I was not allowed up. .... They said cars are allowed up during the holidays but not motorbikes or even bicycles. They also said they had orders from Phnom Penh and that this was due to people having accidents lately'.

  On the eighteenth:

  ' The road is now pretty good and I'd say wouldn't be too hard for a Camry'.

  Yes, well CC went up by Camry on Saturday, a breeze I would say. But we had to rent the Camry as a local tour operator insisted it was not allowed to drive in private cars, which was clearly not the case. Lots of other Camry's were there, with PP number plates. Maybe there are different rules for foreigners?
  

The first part of the road up Bokor is under construction, the rest is very easy going.

• Sure, the road to Bokor is unpaved but no potholes, this despite what is mentioned in this article in the Phnom Penh Post (April 18 - May1):

  'The road - currently a muddy, pot-holed nightmare - will be enlarged and sealed at a cost of some $20 million'.

  The authors of this piece probably never visited the place at least not - currently -.
  In all, the article is a nice piece of PR for the Sokimex / Sokha Hotels. Take for instance the sentences:

  'The French colonial buildings will be preserved'

  and

  ' "We will knock down the casino", the owner says'.

  No criticism. The Cambodia Daily for the last few weeks has been advertising for someone to come up with a 'master development plan', makes you wonder? They also mention Sokha projects in Kirirom, where there are none and give the floor to lamentations on Sihanoukville's airport: 'Sihanoukville is dead [?] because of the lack of airport development'. That seems a bit harsh especially to those tourists having problems finding rooms during December / January. The last thing you can call Sihanoukville, is that it's 'dead'. And international flights are coming Sihanoukville's way, Bangkok Airways not only states it will do so, but actually is in the process of buying aircraft for this purpose, at least according to the Bangkok Post on the eighteenth of April.
  And what to think of the sentence:

  'the new development can capitalize on the long standing reputation of Bokor as a high-end gambling retreat'.

  Is this tongue in cheek? The last 30 years has seen no gambling at all, what a long standing reputation! Well, as long as Phnom Penh Posts' pages are full. Let's hope when and if they become daily the quality standards will appreciate.

• The how to get there part. Khmer 440 again leading the way, this time on the best bus service:

  'We (the Mrs and I) find Mekong Express to be the least worst bus service',

  which seems to sum up this collection of bus horror stories. The small print of your ticket says that your onwards trip to the hotel is a sham. Other experiences:

  'We hopped on the [Sorya] bus in Snooky, the A/C wasn't working, they had to jump start the bus'.

  ...

  'I've blacklisted Capitol Bus after the last debacle [full story on the forum]'.

  ...

  'Also cross off Mekong Express and Paramount on the Siem Reap route anyway'.

  That does not leave the traveler with much alternatives. Then again isn't that part of the lure of going to far off and exotic locations, bus trips from hell?

• The neverending story of getting to

  'the city of Solla Solllew,
  on the banks of the beautiful Wah-Hoo,
  where the never have troubles!
  At least very few'.

  [taken from Dr Suess' 'I had trouble getting to Solla Sollew'].
  
  But of course Crossing Cambodia means Siem Reap. There are encouraging sounds that the road is improving on the Siem Reap - border side, but the border rip offs remain:

  'Editor's Note: Although this traveler did not seem too fussed by the money exchange scam, or this pre-paid trip in general, I would point out that the fact remains he was 1.) ripped off by $22 on the exchange scam, 2.) Had he purchased a visa (I can only wonder what lies they told the other passengers) he would have been ripped off by another $20, and 3.) Although a taxi is indeed a better option, they did manage to extract another $6+ from him to ride in it. So the overcharge was $28+ and could have been nearly $50. This is I think, evidence enough of what I've been saying for years, that these pre-paid transport services should be avoided at all times'.

  Recent images of the road at danbrew.
  

Then the accidents:

• Khmer News.com mentions:

  'According to temporary report from authority and ground traffic officers, there are 14 people died and nearly 100 injured in traffic accidents during three days of Khmer New Year 2008 from April 13-15'.

  Phnom Penh Post (April 18-May 1, 2008) mentions :

  'Eight killed, 21 injured in Phnom Penh'. Substantially more people were killed on Phnom Penh roads this New Year, ...'.

  They also refer to RTAVIS statistics mentioning that last year the number of deaths were 74 in total, whereas Crossing Cambodia reported just 54, some difference. Thailand's Nation reports preliminary figures of 324 deaths (up), from Lao no news.
  Elsewhere a more detailed account of an accident, as a high profile singer was involved. Besides describing the accident and the number of deceased, the odd article ends on an upbeat 'note':

  'Sok Pisey has regained her conscience, and she now smiles to her visitors'.

  More from Khmernews.com:

  'The car’s driver drove like the wind from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap town. After arrive home from local pagoda during Khmer New Year, the victims gathered on the side road on the left. Then the car ran over and killed them [five people at 'least']'.

• Today's (April 21, 2008) Cambodia Daily keeps us up to date with the villagers vs. quarry battle:

  'Takeo provincial officials Friday asked [not ordered?] the quarrying company to pave a 6 km road in Bati district that villagers blocked for weeks to prevent company trucks from kicking up too much dust, an official said. ICB [the company] agreed to pave the road and then collect toll fees to cover the cost, Tnort commune chief Heng Hong said Sunday. However, ICB manager You Kheang said his company would not pave the road and that it was the provincial rural development department's responsibility to do so. "If it does not pave it, we will discuss it again," You Kheang said, adding that his company is now using a different road for its routes'.

  Well, the question rises what was decided at the meeting? And does the 'different road' now affect different villagers? A case study of ineffective governance.

• Furthermore in today's Cambodian Daily, another example of good governance:

  'Preah Vihear provincial police chief Mao Pov on Friday denied reports quoting him as saying that police shot at two men on April 13, killing one and missing the other when an altercation arose over how fast the victims were driving. Mao Pov said he had been misquoted and that the police did not shoot at the two men and were not responsible for the death'.

  The small article goes on about how the police know of nothing, which seems at complete opposite ends to the 'truth'. A provincial coordinator for human rights adds that police were implicated, they brought the victim to the hospital and had paid the deceased family $1,000 in compensation. But they are not involved!
  What happens if you run a red light in Preah Vihear? One way ticket to Baghdad? Wrong! The answer is nothing, they don't have traffic lights in the province, barely have anything that resembles a road come to think of it.

• Phnom Penh Post (April 18 - May 1, 2008) 'Police Blotter' selected entries:

  'April 3 Mom Phearom, 25, was arrested and the motorbike he was riding seized, after he and two associates [?] allegedly robbed a traveler of his motorbike, 10 minutes earlier'.

  'April 7: one of three young men accused of tying wire at head height across a street was arrested after police came across the wire intended to topple motorists by catching them by the neck. Motorbikes, once separated from their rider could then be taken'.

  'April 7: Two men suspected of involvement in the murder and robbery of a women on October 4, 2007 were captured by police in Battambang province. police said the woman had been killed for her motorbike, phone and jewellery. They arrested her boyfriend'.

  Well, fine boyfriend she had. Surprisingly, all above were arrested but not shot. Supposedly they were not speeding ....
  

Chasing Cars, Cambodian Style 5 March 2008

Most updates are just morsels found in other (blog) sites:

• Expat Advisory Services dishes this out:

  'Commenting on increasing traffic burdens, Dr. [Gavin, who 'has lived in Cambodia for 15 years'] Scott is puzzled by the apparent lack of urban planning, "prestige projects will congest the streets with traffic and sewage. Immediate acquisition of status and money take precedence over long term planning".'

• Cambodia Calling has a posting on roughly the same theme as highlighted last week on this site:

  'No Public Transport. Why is there no public transport within towns in Cambodia? Not even in the capital Phnom Penh. There cannot be many cities the size of Phnom Penh without public transport. ... It's probably harder than it seems to get a public transport system right and people the world over complain about their country's public transport. But we have to start somewhere'.

• Cambodia Calling also mentions Stan Kahn who has a number of passionate plea's for different attitudes to traffic over on Khmer 440. According to that site he now has put up shop in Kampot. Relevance?

  'Meanwhile the train should be running again this August. It won't be as fast as the taxi but it will be a pleasure'.

  Don't count too much on it!
  

• More trains on this comment from (DaS) to a link from here which was originally a link to another web-site, which was a translation of , etc., etc. :
  

  'I rode the train two weeks ago.
  From Phnom Penh there’s only one active line, to Battambang. It leaves every Saturday morning at 6:20 am.
  I wanted to go to B’Bang but boredom made me get off in Pursat. Nice little town to spend an afternoon.
  Besides wood I didn’t see much cargo, and although all seats were taken (two cars) it was hardly crowded. No wonder, it’s unreliable, slow and relatively expensive. It was cool though to see how a heap of wood was loaded from a bamboo train onto and into the last passenger car, while on the move. I wanted to take pictures, but one of four train conductors said no. I wonder why…'

• More on public transport. The Mirror (Vol. 12, No. 550) publishes an article from Neak Cheat Niyum. Apprarently the ban on big buses in the city center is back on, but only from the end of this year:

  'To solve the problems of daily traffic congestions in Phnom Penh due to the growth of the population and the increasing number of vehicles, the governor of Phnom Penh, Mr. Kep Chuk Tema issued a strict announcement: to prohibit large passenger buses from operating on the roads of Phnom Penh by the end of 2008'.

  To solve the problem, buses will halt near the city perimeter, however no mention is made of how passengers would then get to their final destination. Has the municipality ever thought of setting up a bus station?
  
  On another note, the municipality also stressed the following:
  

  'In particular, the disrespect of traffic laws is one of the main causes of traffic congestions'.

  Despite this long overdue admission, there may be new ones lurking.
  
  Yesterday I travelled down Monivong at 4 in the afternoon, but it was far from smooth; KFC have opened their first chicken bar and the clientiele apparently prefer to come by car, but KFC or their local reps (read investors) never thought about where their clients would need to park their cars. Just block the road! Increasingly, succesful businesses (as well as expanding markets) such as Mobitel and Lucky's supermarket are encroaching public roads to use for the clients who are allowed to park, double even triple park their cars. Can't the municipality do something with this?
  

• Kampuchea Crossings highlight an Asialife March 2008 article (not available online) on probably Cambodia's one and only female moto-dup driver.

  'When she attempted to work in the nearby areas she found that fellow Khmers – even the women – were more comfortable taking the traditional male motodup than going with her. Because foreigners are open to the idea of a female driving a mototaxi she is able to get more business there'.

  It's a very good article and gives an insiders view of Khmer women taking up 'male' professions and the strength of single mothers in face of adversity.

• More background on the expressway to Phnom Penh from Can Tho. Mystified, so is Crossing Cambodia and the Cambodian government as well:

  'Kem Borey [director of the Transport Ministry's Road Infrastructure Department] said the highway will run from Can Tho, through An Giang province before the final stretch of approximately 120 km from the border to Phnom Penh. He added that the final route of this last stretch has not been finalized but would either follow National Road 2 through Takeo province, National Road 21 through Takeo province, or comprise a new road traversing Kampot province'.

• Softening the Khmer from the other side is Thailand:

  'After having met with Cambodian Leader Hun Sen, Mr. Samak said Thailand’s assistance to Cambodia would be beneficial to both countries, especially the highway 68 construction project with an additional budget on top of the 1.4 billion baht (US$43.7 million) already allocated.
  
  The road will connect Thailand’s Surin province to Cambodia’s Siem Reap, and seen as an opportunity to boost the tourism industry in the region'.

• KI Media highlight a photo reportage (from the bureau's of AP) on the height of the petrol price in Cambodia. Oddly though, the price they mention is 4,600 riel, which is the amount charged at the petrol pump not at the road stalls which are the subject of all the photo's; petrol at these stalls is still less than 4,000 riel!
  

Chasing Cars, Cambodian Style, February 2 2008

• Not much on internet the last week, however yesterday's (Feb.1, 2008) Cambodian Daily had a couple of traffic related articles. The big news is that highway 32, the road connecting Bokor Mountain (to be, but currently in ruins) Resort, is off-limits while it is being reconstructed (and privatized (?) in the process). Sokha Hotel Group

  'estimates it will take around 2,5 years to complete'.

  Reportedly trekking up the mountain is becoming all the rage.

• 'Traffic Injuries deaths up 45% in November'.

  A yell from again yesterday's Cambodian Daily. However the article then points to the fact that the 45% rise, is in comparison to October, the year to year rise was 18%, which seems very much in line with the growth in traffic overall. The article also reports

  'that the number of motorbike drivers reporting that they wear safety helmets increased from 3% to 7% from October to November'.

  A not so trueful statement, as it concerns victims of accidents. In general a look on today's roads (in Phnom Penh) would reveal that this percentage is 25-40%; it implies that helmet wearers are also safer drivers.

• Only if you are important, does an accident make the newspaper. An executive's car overtaking while a car is coming from the other side ...

• China will invest a packet (55 million $US) in a road to Ratanakiri; no strings attached?

• And now for something completly different:

  'Motor taxi driver injures a robber. ... The robber used a cleaver to rob the motor taxi driver. They scuffled each other. Meanwhile, the motorbike owner took the cleaver from the robber and attacked him back, police said. The victim known as Trei Sopheak, 35, got severe injured seven times in his neck, head and stomach. While both were fighting, police intervened on time and sent them to the hospital.'

• Motorcycle touring Cambodia? 'Don't look back in Angkor'. A pity the Chinese and private companies will ruin the future for these tourists. Which kind? The kind that like this:

  'The two boys and their bikes are totally covered in mud and I suspect, as I try to kick-start my Honda XR250, that I will be soon, given the road ahead is a barely passable series of potholed broken tracks'.