Chasing Cars, January 20 2011

Happy New Year. Just a couple more entries to go and I'll be drawing the curtains on this blog.

• Flights are set to take off between Cambodia and Burma, but not from Phnom Penh, according to an article in this weeks Phnom Penh Post. There's a huge market, that's for sure:

  'Cambodia received 2,614 visitors in 2010 who claimed Myanmar as their country of residence, according to Ministry of Tourism statistics'.

  Seeing how much effort is needed to get flights to countries even closeby it's a bit strange that

  'Officials also requested that Russia and Japan begin regular direct flights to the Kingdom during the ongoing ASEAN Tourism Forum in Phnom Penh.“We are hopeful that if we have direct flights with Russia and Japan, tourists will increasingly come to our country,” said Thong Khon'.

• More air. Two new airlines approved in Cambodia (PPP, 28 Dec. 2010). But only for domestic destinations, which means between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. That's what the market wants?

• Victims of a plane crash (PPP, Jan 16 2011) are waiting for insurance pay-out for 3,5 years now, how much longer? Avoid using Cambodian airline(s)? Btw, it was a domestic flight ....
  

• The new Siem Reap airport will be constructed whatever anybody else thinks (PPP, 7 December 2010).

  'A government official has claimed work on a new US$1 billion Siem Reap airport is set to begin next year, after the project was approved by Prime Minister Hun Sen'.

  Green light by the government.

• Ung Meng Hong and Kasem Choocharukul have tried to revive the idea of a Phnom Penh bus system (Phnom Penh Post, 18-01-11). Apparently 72% of the respondents might just switch if the prices would be less than nothing. The report also noted that it would be required to see if there is economic viability...
  One problem is that a bus system will help solve traffic conditions, but if traffic conditions require public transport then it is often too late to introduce bus service, nobody is gonna pay for sitting in a bus in a traffic jam.

• Another bus station in the planning. Currently there is none and buses just drop you off wherever they feel like. A senator thinks that a bus station is just what the doctor ordered. The bus station will be 20 km from Phnom Penh. The Phnom Penh Post (13 Dec. 2010) adds:

  'Ly Yong Phat [senator] has been involved in contentious land disputes in Oddar Meanchey and Kampong Speu provinces with villagers who claim to have been displaced by his development projects'.

  Bus companies are already well versed with the consequences.

  'Sok Chan Mony, general manager of the Rith Mony bus company, said the terminal would ease congestion in the city, though he also said that both passengers and transporters would see rising costs if all companies are forced to relocate'.

  The money going where?

• The roadsafetyawareness blog gives us another viral video. In it ,two ladies are asked to pull over, but go ballistic towards the police for the notion that they might just have done something wrong.

• Road rage even in Sihanoukville, with trucks (PPP, Jan 10, 2011).

  'Prum Davuth, 28, and Plong Sokhen, 26, were arrested after they were accused of threatening to run over a number of traffic officers with their truck in Sihanoukville town’s commune 3, said Prum Pov, chief of the provincial traffic police. “We released both of them after they made apologies for their mistake,” he said'.

  End of story.

• The curious world of Cambodia. Sihanoukville, the world's most expensive place for taking a tuk-tuk, is seeing a response. Hotels are now providing transportation to their guests, so they don't fall prey to the tuk-tukers. Makes sure they get to their hotel, and to the beach. But that's not fair cry the tuk-tukkers. And protest. Expat Advisory Service has no less than 42 posts on the issue. In general, the best advice is to stay away of the place altogether. It's a dump. Beach, just head to one of the islands. And why else come to Sihanoukville?

• Over the holidays just another accident to add to the list. Five dead were reported, high official and his family who were overtaking on a blind corner ... Anyway over the holidays the was a controversy in Thailand when a young lady managed to rear end a van which then lost I think 8 passengers who tumbled over the edge of the 30m high road. She was 16. And after the accident needed to text. In Phnom Penh, that's not controversial at all:

  'Koeun Sotharaneth, the 16-year-old son of a general in the National Police, has been charged with manslaughter after he killed three people in a car accident in Kandal province on Friday night'.

  Since (21 Dec. 2010, PPP) have not heard anything on the case. Personally I know two persons who were hit during the holidays while using their bicycles, a trend?

• Elsewhere the metered taxi's are not doing too bad a business (PPP, 9 Jan 2011). Though still not enough that you could hail a taxi, they are increasing in number and are not a bad alternative to tuk-tuks which are growing exponentially in the capital by the looks of it. The owners report slower than expected business but are making a profit.

• Road construction leads to electrical problems (PPP, 5 Jan 2011). Someone needs their wiring checked anyway. The company responsible for the damage, AZ Investment has a reputation for not paying up.

  'He [electricity company representative] did not comment on the extent of the damage, but said AZ has attempted to evade responsibility in the past'.

  Another case of not holding your breathe.

• The Phnom Penh Post (January 5, 2011) reports that there are really persons being apprehended for failing the breathalyzer. It also adds this police citation:

  '“At night time, if there is no presence of police, the respect of law is low,” he said'.

• Phnom Penh has witnessed a couple of new bridges which enable to move from one in-going traffic jam to another. But one needs to pay. That's fine (the roads are great), but elsewhere in the country one also needs to pay for

  '... toll along a road with numerous old bridges in Kandal province’s Sa’ang district'.

  Truck drivers incensed.

• Other bridges take more time. Already in the pipeline for ages, a groundbreaking ceremony will take place for the bridge needed to cross the Mekong between Saigon and Phnom Pen, according to todays Phnom Penh Post.

• Rent seeking. The old weapon of the corrupt. In Koh Kong province according to the Phnom Penh Post (3 Jan 2011), the eco-tourist site (Chipat?) was serviced by many smaller boats.

  'Men Sopheap, 39, a representative of 18 boat owners in Chiphat commune, said Moeng Sophea, a commune official, was set to introduce a tourist ferry service and that boatmen were informed that they would have to wind up their business this week, since their boats were “unsafe”'.

  It will only be for a few years. The site will either become a titanium mine or disappear under a hydropower lake. Progress?

• Congestion spreads to river? The Phnom Penh Post (11 jan, 2011) reports that a tourist boat sunk after hitting a sand barge. No word about how that could happen.

• Discussion topics. Are tuk-tuks safer? Khmer 440 has the answer, tuk-tuks are perceived as safer (but have their own issues) but better still take a taxi.

• For those of you wondering which street is where and whether house no. 24 is next to no. 22 or no. 543b, apparently street signs will return (Phnom Penh Post, Dec 27).

  'City officials have announced ambitious plans to reorganise the numbers of the capital’s buildings and install street signs that will be uniform in style across the city.
  ...
  He said the Chinese Chung Hong Company had been commissioned to manufacture the aluminum signs, but that businesses and homeowners in the capital would be required to pay US$4 each to cover the costs. The scheme received a mixed reaction from residents yesterday, with some expressing concern about the fee they would be required to pay'.

• Big plans not always materialize. A second flyover in Phnom Penh (PPP, 14 Jan 2011) will be downgraded, with somehow the width less than ideal. Another highlight: it will be 50m high. Mistake?

Chasing Cars, March 24, 2010

On a non traffic related matter I recently signed up to Smart internet, they offering some of the cheapest internet on mobile phones. Cheap is definitely not good. Needed just 3 visits to their customer service and now it's working, but soooooo slooooooow. And they have blocked access to KI Media, a seemingly unendless amount of news stories.

'While trying to retrieve the URL: http://ki-media.blogspot.com/ The following error was encountered:

• Access Denied. Access control configuration prevents your request from being allowed at this time. Please contact your service provider if you feel this is incorrect [sic]'.

Anyway on Cambodia's traffic front. Yesterday's (23 March 2010) Phnom Penh Post provided an opposition parliamentarian a couple of columns to allow him to publicly complain about the lack of redress within the Cambodian legal system. Remember his son was shot after a traffic dispute in Phnom Penh's center. Though at the time it was a bit ambiguous about the cause of the dispute, it is tellingly that the police have been unable to arrest the killer despite having his name.

' “... the police have not got any clue about the suspect’s whereabouts. I request that the police speed up their work in this case so that justice can be brought to my son,”...'

However it does seem weird that a parliamentarian thinks he can jump the line. Injustice is common within the country and the legal system is only working for the rich and well-connected. If anything this parliamentarian should know this. Or not?

• How the law sometimes 'works':

  'A 33-year-old man is facing prosecution after he was accused of involvement in a Wednesday traffic accident in Phnom Penh that killed a 30-year-old garment worker and a 13-year-old boy. However, authorities speculated that the man might not be sent to court if he agrees to pay US$4,500 in compensation to the victim’s family. By law, accused perpetrators still face court action even if they agree to out-of-court monetary compensation. But another driver who was allegedly involved in the same accident was not sentenced after he paid up'.

• In and on forums on Cambodia one of the most often asked questions regards transportation and if buses run between x and y, and how are they? Andy B. reviews on his blog his recent trip with paramount to Siem Reap: '

  If you want to do the bus trip between Phnom Penh and Siem Reap then don't choose Paramount Angkor Express, as their bus that carried me between the two, leaving the capital at 6pm, was one of the most uncomfortable I've ever been on. And believe me I've been on some crap buses'.

  After receiving a comment praising the same company he adjusts his views:

  'the bus he [bus driver] was in charge of had seen better days and needed some new screws fitted. By comparison the Mekong Express bus to PP was considerably better'.

• A small article (22 March 2010) in the Phnom Penh Post on how the number of accidents is up. As usual the article is full of statistic wonders.

• The Australian company hoping to earn a buck off Cambodia's railroads has found out that the going will be tough:

  'David Kerr, CEO of Toll Holdings Group Cambodia (THGC), asked the government to put regulations and infrastructure in place, which are needed to fix the country’s railways'.

  Should have thought that before signing up ...

• A promise is what? Cebu Pacific had promised to start to fly to Cambo land this April, but nothing seems to be in the pipeline. This thread on Khmer 440 seems to suggest that it's not such a bad thing ...

  'Cebu Pacific Air is the worst airline I have ever flown--huge delays, booking hassles, canceled flights with no advance notice, refunds that never arrive, and horrible service ...'

• Promises? That's what they hope what will get the Sihanouk airport up and running.

  'Sihanoukville airport is still struggling to attract airlines due to the enduring slump in the regional travel industry, according to an official at Societe Concessionaire des Aeroports (SCA), the French firm that manages the Kingdom’s airports.
  Still, not a single airline has agreed to flights to the airport despite the offer of zero percent airport tax.
  SCA’s Chief Planning Officer Tanguy Bertolus said Tuesday that new national carrier Cambodia Angkor Air (CAA), a joint venture between the government and Vietnam Airlines, was showing reluctance to fly to the recently renovated airport due to the difficult economic climate.
  “Cambodia Angkor is a subsidiary of Vietnam Airlines and the Cambodian government, and they are not really keen right now to take risks and open new lines,” he said'.

  That's goobledigook. The company has only been existing for 12 months and the situation when they started was probably worse than now. So why are they backtracking?

• More tourist related info. As in the previous editions of CC the ... 'boat cartel' ... Though they call themselves a Water Transport Association, they have been trying to cream off the boat owners by imposing themselves and getting the tourists to foot the bill. The way it works:

  'Ly Puthy, association president, said a letter thumbprinted by all members would be sent to the Tourism, Interior, Public Works and Transport ministries, and to Phnom Penh Governor Kep Chuktema, requesting that Rin Naran – owner of the Chamkar Sne boat – immediately join the association'.

• Talking about boats. Why all the fuss about tourist boats?

  'Two women died when a boat sank on the Mekong River in Prey Veng province on Friday, police said, the most recent of a string of such incidents throughout the Kingdom prompting officials to issue warnings about the dangers of overloading passenger boats and other vessels'.

• Tourism helps? After visiting Cambodia in 2007 (by bicycle) Dan Austin decided to get help in, by donating cycles to children. In Cambodia of course, in Uganda, in Peru. The organisation 88 Bikes, gets a (very positive) roll call on CBS News. 88 is the cost of donating a bicycle.
  

• Has someone picked up on this? Phnom Penh is to become clean? Cambodian Beginnings has a short blog entry.

  'However, as of next month Phnom Penh City Hall intends to rectify the state of it's streets. 5000 riel fines (US $1.20) will be administered to anyone seen discarding rubbish in public places. The boulevards are wide, tree-lined and quite beautiful in some places. Perhaps this fine will go some way in returning Phnom Penh to it's hayday of being the 'Paris of the East' in the 1950's'.

• Elsewhere in the city the officials are trying to prevent anarchy from amorous bulls.

  'Police in the capital’s Dangkor district have seized 15 wayward cows and bulls after a recent spate of incidents in which lustful bulls have vigorously pursued potential mates, disrupting traffic and endangering passersby, officials said'.

  This even made the international press. Or better said the Malaysian press.
  

• A clinic in Phnom Penh was closed down due to complaints following a traffic accident. Or not?

  'The Health Ministry has opted to shut down a medical clinic that was accused of negligence in its treatment of a man who succumbed to injuries sustained in a traffic accident last week, the director of the Phnom Penh Municipal Health Department said Sunday.
  ...
  “The association ran a health-care business without approval from the Ministry of Health and was shut down,” Sok Sokun, the municipal Health Department director, said Sunday. “It will be allowed to reopen only after it receives an official license to operate from the ministry.”'

Just outside Phnom Penh

• And did I mention that Phnom Penh once more slipped up an opportunity to join in with WNBR? As Byron Bay, Melbourne, Canberra, Lima, Adelaide, Golden Bay, Sydney, Sao Paulo.
  This (northern hemisphere) summer then?
  

Chasing Cars, mid March 2010

During the past month steps have been announced to get the general public to comply to a couple of paragraphs of the traffic law as well as suggestions being made to expand the law. Helmet fines would rise 6-fold.

'The fine has been set too low, which means drivers have not stopped their bad habits. They seem to look down on the traffic law,” he [Him Yan, director of the Department of Public Order at the Interior Ministry] said'.

The idea actually comes from Handicap International. The article also suggests that higher fines will lead to more unreasonable police.
Note also in this article the photo with caption implying the offender is paying for a mirror offense. That despite the photo showing that the offender does have a mirror. An editorial mistake?

However some problems are overlooked. Poor compliance is due to poor law implementation. Go anywhere outside the capital and you'll soon see compliance to the law drops to single figures, even police don't care. Nor is there any law enforcement once the sun drops, even in Phnom Penh.

Additionally, much is made of visible law enforcement. Probably one of the biggest dangers is running red lights about which nothing is done ...

The Cambodia Mirror argues the same point of poor law enforcement in Cambodia in general. It uses the recent license plate drama as reference.

Anyway the police are positive:

'.... 10,859 motorbike drivers had been stopped during the first two weeks of February because they lacked mirrors or helmets'.

That said Khmer 440 forum once more adds some real life detail. A forum poster describes how to nail a culprit. Then follows more experiences with law enforcement.

BTW:

'officials have delayed a decision on a long list of proposed amendments to the Kingdom’s traffic laws'.

Officials need more time ...

• In a never ending list for regulating everything, the government would like suits for moto drivers in Phnom Penh. Not a three piece though. '

  “We want to give safety to the tourists and make the city look good,” Chreang Sophan said, in explanation of the motivation for creating the uniform'.

  Siem Reap already has experience with $10 suits:

  ' ... uniforms had identification numbers on them, and that no moto or tuk-tuk driver had committed crimes against passengers since the uniforms were introduced [in 2002]'.

  That's no reported crimes ...

• The national airline buys a new aircraft, it's first. No price is mentioned nor who the seller is. Hence, CC believes that the price is too expensive and that the seller is closely involved. Funny though as CC would like to check some recent info, the airlines site is in error (mid day March 11, 2010).

• KI Media has a link to a strange article. Apparently a Korean company has been awarded a contract to

  'design and supervise the improvement of two national highways and one local road and the construction of a detour'.

  The former shouldn't be too hard.

• Construction of the road to Pailin is not going according to plan. A Chinese company somehow isn't coughing up the money required according to a Phnom Penh Post article.

• Stan is writing again on Kampot. This time he blames paving for flooding after rains. Though the authorities blame clogged drains. Whatever, it's probably due to the local government.

• How many times can you make the news with the same project? A signing ceremony was held in March 2010 for a project begun in 2007! A project to improve Cambodia's railways, but that we knew already.
  Bigger news though is that something is really happening. I've seen new sleepers in Takeo and disappearing rails between Takeo and Kampot.

Kep station

• Possible real news on the rail front for Cambodia comes from China via SMH ( 10-03-10). They know somehow that

  'A third network [of high spped trains] would extend south through Vietnam, Thailand, Burma and Malaysia'.

  Is Cambodia missing the train?

• Phnom Penh's tourism boats are another recently regulated category. The Association of Phnom Penh Water Tourist Transport (essentially a government organisation) believes in order, not in competition. This contradicted by the Phnom Penh's port director. The Ministry now also wants the boats to be licensed (how much will that cost? All extra costs will be charged to the users ...).
  Anyway a few days later 5 members of the association were quitting. There complaint, surprise, surprise:

  'business went down'.

  The associations reply? Clear off!
  Now the government will be stepping in or so says the Phnom Penh Post (4 March 2010).

• A spike in car registration? Would the Phnom Penh Post have expected a decrease? Now only 1.13 million vehicles were registered.
  

Finally, we all know how whacky Cambodia's transportation system is. A photography book by Conor Wall and Hans Kemp gives examples of moto's and their freight. The issuing is accompanied by an exhibition in the FCC.

More examples of whacky moto's are available from Life in Cambodia.

Chasing Cars, December the tenth 2009

Two whopping weeks have passed and I haven't hardly got anything to elaborate on. Boring, boring. Police are out doing their job. The dodgers are out dodging the police and no improvement seems to be happening.

• Phnom Penh Post looks at corruption yesterday (9 December 2009). The visual example is as follows with subtext:

Photo by Tracey Shelton.

'Police refuse to issue a traffic fine to a driver on Sihanouk Boulevard earlier this year, saying they do not have the paperwork for official fines and can only accept bribes'.

• New tax proposal accepted by the Cambodian parliament:

' “The budget law for 2010 foresees also an increase of taxes on means transportation including automobiles (road taxes):

1. Vehicles with a power over 12 HP to 17 HP, within 5 years from their production date, have to pay Riel 500,000 [approx. US$125] each year, and after the 5th years, it is Riel 360,000 [approx. US$90].
2. Cars with a power over 17 HP to 24 HP, within 5 years from their production date, have to pay Riel 1,600,000 [approx. US$400], and after the 5th year, it is Riel 1,200,000 [approx. US$300].
3. Cars with a power over 24 HP, like Lexus’ and Land Cruisers, had to pay only Riel 1,000,000 [approx. US$250] for road tax in the previous year, but next year, they will be charged Riel 2,000,000 [approx. US$500].
4. As for passengers’, general transportation, and tourists’ cars with a power of 12 HP, and small motorbikes, their taxes are kept at the same level'.

• Boating in Cambodia. A talesofasia forum entry has all the answers.

• The airport ready but still not opened (Sihanoukville) is pleased to mention that it just mite receive regular flights from neighbouring countries Malaysia and Korea. No wrong, our neighbours are Thailand and Vietnam. Wouldn't that be more logic, flights from Saigon and Bangkok? Rather than an A320 from Seoul?

• Economy getting back into shape. I mean economic indicators pointing to more money being made in the country but collectively we're getting poorer at least psychological, why need money? To buy .... motorcycles!

  'Dealers say new Honda models are driving recent rebound'

  They drive themselves?

• Yet again suckers trying to bus themselves to/from Bangkok, this time via Koh Kong.

  'The Combined tickets F*ck us travellers. And Koh Kong is not a quick way to Bangkok....The companies don't think we will spread the word.....do it! We are not collectively STUPID'.

  Is that a question? Do you really want me to answer that?

• More on buses to/from Sihanoukville. From Khmer 440:

  'Be aware that if you are doing this trip with Kampuchea Angkor Express, they do not stop in PP city area, but continue straight across the Jap. Friendship bridge to their new office on the other side of the Tonle Sap. All that inspite of me asking where they stop, before buying my ticket. Their answer was at the Old Market. Maybe this is the first stage of relocating all buses outside the city center'.

  Interesting that, spend an extra hour in the bus so as to be dropped off at some kind of out of town shelter, jam packed with creamers (moto's / tuktuks). Great system. What about the government open up bus stations for the diverse directions, i.e. a southern, western, northern and Vietnamese bus station? They could ex-expropriate some poor souls, get some git to do all the work for free, lease it out for 100+ years (that's the theory) and sit on top of the cash and do the public a favour in the process. City Hall reads this blog? Nah, they have no dosh for a internet connection ...

• On yer bike? Tomorrow an exhibition by Bike Ben on something he did and how he landed up in the Penh. @ the living room.

Chasing cars, 3-9-09

Heavy rain has been coming down for the past 4-5 days rendering much of Phnom Penh's infrastructure unusable, at least during the rains themselves. Holes are re-appearing in the street and poor roads are now getting a wash out, take care. What is known as the only flood map of the city, discussed on Khmer 440 has seen added comments 2 years after the original. An update is apparently underway ....

• Enforcing the law. The police claim now to have (temporarily) confiscated nearly 100,000 vehicles! Quite a feat. What's more surprising is that over 1% of this vehicles remain unclaimed, can't believe it myself.

• Discussion on Khmer 440 also involves comments saying the traffic situation is changing slowly for the better. Crossing Cambodia is yet to see itself as do others, though 2 from members reporting a 'Hummer' giving way! Response:

  'Yeah I know the Hummer guy. Don't get your hopes too high quite yet. His maid's on vacation in the province and he doesn't want to wash off the blood and bones fragments by himself so he's taking it easy this week.
  She's back next sunday and he'll hit the road (and the rest of us) with a vengeance'.

  That's more like it ....

• Anyway according to a report of the Traffic Police

  '299 tourists were involved in road accidents in Cambodia in the first half of 2009, compared with just 168 in the first half of 2008'.

  During that period there were less tourists, so have all of sudden the farang turned into bad drivers? The report has no answers. Why target transport companies for tourist?

  '"It is really very bad for our tourism sector when tourists die in road accidents here," said Sem Psnha Vuth, victim and road accident information controller. "Visitors who see road accidents will be shocked."

  What about the 'common people'? Not so bad?
  

• The last CC post entry contained a reference to Phnom Penh Posts interview with a female moto-taxi driver. Apparently they are 'rare', they claim. Funny though that the Globe August edition are able to get an interview with another female moto-dup chauffeur. Copy-cats? Though it may be rare and seen as something special Morn Thida denies this.
  

  'What challenges do you face as a female motodop?
  To be honest there aren’t that many challenges as the job isn’t difficult.'

  She does note a specialty not often en-counted with moto-dops:

  'Most people, from my experience, would rather I ask than pretend to know where I am going'.
  

  However the Globe seems to be intend to make Thida feel strange as they insist on asking questions concerning the female element. Thida shrugs them all off. Out of desperation the next to last question is :

  'If you were to marry, do you think your husband would mind your choice of profession?
  I can’t imagine he would mind. If he can find another job for me that pays more, then great, I’ll try that',

  Thida answers. Welcome to the 21st century, Globe!

• The Globe is also the source of an in-depth article on Cambodia's new airline, Cambodia Angkor Air. Mostly the article points out the promise. This week it also took delivery of an Airbus, so as to expand the number of flights which seems to contradict the dire econmic times. Whether it's the right move remains to be seen:

  'The airline - which launched July 27 - had seen a steady increase in passenger numbers, with an average passenger load of between 30 and 40 percent during the first month of operations, he said, without supplying official data, which he said was not yet available'.

  Considering the prices were $6 on the main internal stretch, the economic logic seems to be far away. A CAA spokesperson:

  ' "For the first few years, we do not expect any profits. We will just promote our carrier and attract customers" '.
  

  Deep pockets?

• More past to present info. This time tracks. As expected rail dwellers are not to get much for moving off the rail. The PPP accompanies a brief and boring report with a photo of kids playing on the tracks.

• Then the traffic on water. More cash is in the offering for a 'port' in Kep so as to enable tourists heading for The former Cambodian island of Phu Coc, again reported by the PPP. A conference center is what is on the cards ...

• With less tourists, boat companies are clashing in Siem Reap over tourists, so reports the PPP. Background of the 'clashes':
  

  ' "The Cambodian Association of Travel Agents has no business organising boat tours. They have become involved in order to protect the interests of rich and powerful people," he said'.
  

  Ah, such is the Khmer republic ...

Chasing Cars, the Preah Vihear peace edition

Everywhere there's Preah Vihear in the media, here, there and everywhere. Which is quite surprising. It's been here/there for centuries and hopefully will be here/there for more, however politicians and/or soldiers seem to need to uptake the issue of whether the temple is here or there to fulfill their cause, as if here/there are no more pressing issues?
Final word on the issue, with the Thai side closed and the Cambodian side nearly impassable (rains), don't hold your breath on the temple becoming the second Angkor Wat or what, within the foreseeable future that is.

• A first on the election front:

  'Two party activists killed in collision'

  is an item from VOA as published on KI Media.

  '"This is the first time a political party activist died in an election campaign due to a traffic accident," he [Pok Pulrith, chief of traffic police in Takeo] said'.

  Make that first and second. Usually, party activists are killed by murder. Do not know whether this is a change for the good ....

• More from the front, ... the election front that is, not the Thai-Cambo front! Vuthasurf writes about campaigning with government cars albeit without license plates:

  'According to the new road traffic law, the vehicle’s drivers without license plates are subject to a prison sentence of between six days to one month and a fine ranging from 20,000 to 200,000 riel'.

  He then concludes:

  'the enforcement of traffic law is still weak, and only the poor and ordinary people have been punished and fined'.

• Khmernews.com on the same issue, reveals that the 2008 parliamentary election campaign is actually:
  

  'A Lot of Unlicensed Vehicles Campaign'.

  Though that's what the opposition thinks ...

• Vietnam is now irritated about subsidizing petrol in Cambodia. Considering the bill they have to pay for subsidizing their own petrol last year was over $1 billion, subsidizing Cambodia in the process can hardly be worth being irritated.

  'The Market Monitoring Department under the Ministry of Industry and Trade said that petrol smuggling in the Mekong Delta tended to increase lately, with some 15,000 liters of petrol smuggled to Cambodia per day'.

  At 0,30 $US profit margin / ltr, this might represent $1.5 -2.0 $US million, probably not even a percent of this years bill. Cheap neighbours nah?

• More from the frontier of the illegal fuel smugglers, this time from the other (now irritated?) neighbour ostensibly known as the 'Land of Smiles'.
  A fuel truck overturns. As 3 journo's (or is it journies?) happen to pass, they see this as a great photo op. Not so.

  'Then two men from a Mitsubishi car which came, with a license plate of the Royal Cambodian Armed Forces [RCAF] with the umber 2 2809, jumped out and hit the journalists with their hands and kicked them and brutally twisted their arms and boxed them'.

  Journo no. 1 had

  'his nasal bone ... broken'

  , journo no. 2 had

  'his camera ... broken'

  , while journo no. 3

  'was able to escape from the hitting'.

  Luckily for Cambodia, that these guys fight for us! Pity that now the stream of cheap fuel from Thailand will come to a stop.

• There are some 'normal' news facts from Cambodia itself:

  'Cyclo drivers in security guard smackdown'.

  From the Khmeri Prosperous blog:

  'Phnom Penh’s cyclo drivers say security guards around the city’s markets are chasing them off and making it increasingly difficult for them to earn a living. ...
  “About half of all of cyclo drivers have faced problems with market security guards, usually asking them for money,” she [Cyclo Center coordinator Nouv Sarany] said, adding that guards at Phsar Thmei (Central Market) and the Sorya Shopping Center were the leading cause of headaches [is that literally or a figure of speech?]'.

  Shame on those guards! ABC adds:

  'The drivers have also accused the guards of seeking protection money'.

• Paying protection money? Yesterday's (July 18, 2008) Cambodia Daily mentions:

  'Tuk-tuk drivers form unofficial union at port'.

  What for?

  'to control access to tourists arriving ... at Phnom Penh Autonomous Port'. ... In return for the monthly payments, security guards will ensure that only members of the group [or 'unofficial' union] will be allowed into the area where tourists arrive.

  The manager of the port though seems to be a bit slow:

  "Nowadays we don't take money from the tuk-tuk drivers ...",

  but then regathers himself, contemplates and believes it's a grand idea, charging 'protection money:

  "but in future, we might charge some money", Hei Bovy [Phnom Penh Autonomous Port Authority General Manager] says.

  As their formation was to halt:

  'limiting earning for drivers',

  one guess should suffice to who will eventually ends up paying the 'protection' money!
  Next time take the bus and hope the bus company doesn't do the same! Fat chance....

• Finally from the statistics front: April saw 176 less citizens in Cambodia, which represents a 21% increase over April 2007 Cambodia Daily reports (18 July 2008) from a (unpublished?) monthly report by RTAVIS.
  Again the police are quoted on how the traffic law is being disrespected. Well police, do something about it!
  

Chasing Cars, Khmer New Year 2008 style

• Some would forget that this week is part of the global effort to ensure road safety. This was passed off in Phnom Penh by a great celebration in the Olympic Stadium. At the pow-wow, Chreang Sophan, Deputy Governor of the Phnom Penh Municipality, representing the Municipal Governor Kep Chuk Tema, stated amongst others that:

  'Responding to these issues [increasing numbers of accidents] under the smart [?] leadership of Samdech Akkak Moha Senapadei Dekchor Hun Sen, the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, the Phnom Penh Municipality will be implementing road constructions and road repair plans by paving roads in four districts by the end of 2008, and other plans will be implemented in three other districts in the suburbs'.

  If this is the government's response, then clearly they are in serious need of (re-)education. Furthermore:

  'The deputy municipal governor also called on citizens who travel in the city to drive carefully, and firmly practice the measures passed in the land traffic law. Especially those who use motorcycles and bicycles must wear helmets. ... He appealed to all citizens, the users of vehicles and the users of roads countrywide, to respect and to strictly implement the measures stated in the Cambodian Land Traffic Law, ...'.

  Clearly this official fails to grasp the reality of the traffic law, i.e. bicycle drivers do not require helmets! In a summation of the most important measures of the now old traffic law, this official fails to signify that traffic police are not to accept 'donations'. Practically the only time these curb huggers get into action is to accept donations from passing trucks. Strictly implement?
  

• Cambodia Daily (April 8, 2008) also comments on this 'celebration'.

  'Road Safety Week, which kicked off Sunday, aims to raise awareness and reduce traffic awareness and reduce traffic accidents in the days during and around the three day holiday. ... Sun Chanthol [Minister of Public Works and Transport] urged travelers to keep from speeding and overloading vehicles. He also called on motorcyclists to wear safety helmets and for drivers to follow new traffic laws'.

  Oddly enough (if you read next item) it quotes RTAVIS statistics:

  '.... 4 percent of drivers wear helmets'.

  A misquote / failure to understand statistics?
  

• What does the Cambodian donor community do, except financing such nonsense?

  'The president of Handicap International Belgium [HIB] stated that the topic of this Week of Land Traffic Safety, held for the second time in Cambodia, was to cooperate to reduce traffic accidents through the respect of the traffic law'.

  Cooperate! Luckily HIB are saved by a recent update on the roadsafetycambodia site concerning the use of helmets. Clearly, it states that the law should have been implemented as of Sept. 1 last year, but compulsory helmet usage is not being enforced (as are none of the other articles of the law).
  
  Here at Crossing Cambodia we have commented on the fact that only 25-35% of the moto's use helmets. This is validated by this research which concluded that the rate of helmet usage was about 28% with a variation of 25-34%. So much for their research, they could just of looked at this site (and saved some money / time).
  
  There was some variation though. On some roads outside Phnom Penh, up to 50% of the traffic participants had helmets on. Crossing Cambodia could also state that female drivers also more often use helmets. Their main conclusion:

  'Through out the survey, in 2008 we found that the number of helmet wearing increase in all surveyed national road and in average 8.66% increase. This number will rapidly increase if the new traffic law was respect by the people and the traffic police start to enforce the law and the traffic police take action on the people who don’t wear helmet'.

  Now where have we heard this before? Possibly the main donor of this organization could pay more attention to enforcement than 'cooperation'.

• In Bangkok, red light dodging has lead the authorities to institute cameras at more than 30 intersections. That's what today's (10 April 2008) Bangkok Post mentions on it's front page.

  'During a trial more than 2,000 vehicles went through red lights in a week at 15 intersections where cameras had been installed.'

  Goes to show, that the only gain, in traffic culture, is pain! Hello Cambodia,are we paying attention?
  

• A comparison with Iraq! Finally, Cambodia has something to be proud of. Or not? The Cambodia Daily of sometime this week reports on an ox-cart which was rigged to a bomb so as to injure/kill it's owner!

  'At about 6 am (Monday, April 7, 2008), an activist for local rights group Adhoc in Kampong Chhnang province, was about to move his oxcart in Khlong Popoak commune, when he discovered two large recoilless rifle shells tied to a small trigger under the cart'.

  It could have caused an explosion covering 30 square meters!

• Cambodia Daily (7 April 2008) headlines: 'Cops among four arrested on extortion claims':

  'The four [a district police official, a provincial tax officer and two money collectors] allegedly operated a checkpoint on a 7 km dirt road taking money from fish sellers and drivers since 2004 [!]. They apparently took [extorted is meant] up to $50 per vehicle. A local company received permission to collect tolls [read bribes] from 2004 to 2020, but not until repairs the company had promised [ah promises are not meant to be kept] are done'.

  Only now has action been undertaken, does this have anything to do with the coming elections except pure co-incidence?

• Innovative ways to ask drivers to be more human? 'No Horn Day' for instance in Mumbai. For those of us who fail to grasp English, it has nothing to do with sex.

  'Mumbai is very horny. ... Everybody honks because the other is honking. It’s an atavistic instinct it seems. I will be thought of as weak if I don’t honk. They honk when they get free roads and honk of course when there is a red light. Of what use is the horn when the Red light is speaking to you. Why pressurize? But I am an old man at 30 closing my ears at different junctions. Everyday I invariably tell the auto I am in to not honk. Only to be stared back in hatred. Drive, they ask back in silence. Drive in this mess you elite bastard with weak ears, they seem to ask me. I ask them if they don’t hate all this honking? They smile back. Occupational hazard…why take it so seriously! The world honks and so do I. So will you, once you take the wheel'.

  Well, things change:

  'On Monday, officially declared No Horn Day, the Mumbai traffic police, in a fell swoop, fined thousands of drivers for violating honking rules in the city. The count up to 6 pm was 6,195 cases.
  Beginning Monday night, the cops plan to crack down further and prosecute offenders under the Environment Protection Act, which has far more stringent penalties: this act, which can be used in cases ranging from bursting firecrackers or blasting loudspeakers after 10 pm to honking at night, has a maximum fine of Rs 1 lakh depending on the severity of the offence.
  
  "This will prove an effective deterrent to errant drivers," joint commissioner of police Hemant Karkare told TOI. "However, this move is at a preliminary stage. We need some more preparation before we go the whole hog".
  
  Karkare declared that the crackdown against shrill and reverse horns, unnecessary honking and honking in silence zones would go on. When a journalist mentioned that SRK felt that No Horn Day should continue for a week, he riposted, "It's not one day or one week. This will now continue permanently".

Minor news, a round up:

• Another motorbike stolen while simultaneously shooting it's owner.
  
• A bus kills a cyclist, who forgot to look over his shoulder.
  
• Connect Cambodia (with?) is/are astounded by the 'traffic sprawl'.
• Cambodia's PM knows what his citizens are thinking:

  'For Hun Sen, there are several reasons which explained this low participation. First of all, the Phnom Penh city dwellers “are fed up with the traffic jams caused by these demonstrations.”'

  Considering there are hardly 'these demonstrations' taking place (unless in front of KFC on Monivong, where demonstrations of lack of consideration take place on a daily basis) and traffic grid lock is expanding daily, maybe it might pay to get traffic lights to function and to enforce the need for motorists to stop when the light is red!
• An older article which has just resurfaced on Crossing Cambodia's desk. Alas, no date, but undoubtedly from the Cambodia Daily. Ship had hit another sunken ship.

  'A Phnom Penh Port Authority official claimed that Friday's capsizing of a boat carrying sand on the Tonle Sap occurred after it had snagged the top of another sand-carrying boat that had been sitting on the bottom of the river since December. ... Phnom Penh police chief Touch Naruth reiterated Monday that there were no tourists aboard the vessel and ....'.

  What a relief! No tourists on a sand barge!
  

Getting around: Koh Kong

Travelling in and around Koh Kong township: better off with a (speed) boat

Safety First

Co-incidental or not, two articles in yesterday's (December 5, 2007) Cambodia Daily highlighted aspects of transport safety and the way that Cambodian authorities view this.

The first article is on a draft Civil Aviation Law to regulate air travel.

'Secretary of State at the State Sectretariat of Civil Aviation told the Assembly that the draft law is meant to enhance passengers' safety and security and to ...'

However what the draft law only does is to make the commercial operators liable for accidents causing injury to passengers.

Cambodian aviation resulted in two accidents in the past year, both by aging ex-Soviet planes, one with loss of life. Considering this in respect to hardly having any internal air traffic or Cambodia-originating international flights, it was of course logical, that an opposition MP (SRP MP Sok Pheng) would seek to ban these aircraft, however Mao Ha Savanna (the same as above? the source), State Secretary of the National Civil Aviation Department, replied that it is not the type of aircraft which determines the accident. In the meantime, the accident earlier this year above and in the Cardomom mountains is yet to be explained and family of the deceased to receive their insurance pay-outs.

With the oncoming investment of an Indonesian firm in a Cambodia flag carrier and with these kind (Piece of Wing found on Runway in Jakarta; Do you own a plane? Is it missing a piece of wing? If so, it's lying on the runway at Jakarta's international airport. Officials there don't know which ...) of accidents / incidents common in Indonesia even after receiving widespread international condemnation this year, one might think that Cambodian aviation might not improve much in the near future. And what about Cambodia's track record on law enforcement?

Meanwhile another article above this one, described what can mentioned as 'Mutiny on the Tonle Sap'. Apparently a ferry carrying tourists from Siem Reap to Phnom Penh started taking in water. The crew were very relaxed on this, actually so relaxed they let the passengers take the helm and steer the boat to nearest shore (remember Tonle Sap is a lake) while

'sealing the hole on the portside withwood from the boat's staircase, passengers' T-shirts, and a rubber sandal'.

On nearing the shore an even bigger surprise [at least that's what Crossing Cambodia thinks]: police had sent a rescue boat! The ferry (with 100-plus passengers) was brought to a nearby harbour where the hole was welded . Province of Kampong Chnang deputy police chief:

'If the boat had just continued to Phnom Penh, it would have sunk because the hole was getting bigger and bigger'.

The owner denies the whole event even took place and explains that there was no danger and no 'mutiny'. And what about the government regulation / intervention? None.

In the meantime Cambodia has been identified as a state with 'negative performance indicators' according to Round Table of international shipping associations. Together with amongst others Congo, North Korea and Mongolia [!].

So what about the safety? Who cares. Compare the following (non-edited) article (from the Khmer News site) with the negligence of Cambodian authorities to enforce their approved traffic law which requires compulsory helmet use:

'Head completely destroyed after crashed

Sunday, December 02, 2007

Phnom Penh: A lady with her head broken and brain came out, died instantly after a crash along Chorm Chao road in Dorg Kor district. This accident occurred at 5. 05 pm on 1st December, while the victim riding on a motorbike taxi in the same direction with the truck. When arriving at the place, the truck increased its speed that making the motorbike rider at the back dropped from her sit staying under the truck’s tire. There her head was completely crashed and died immediately, whereas the truck driver could not be arrested'.