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DaC driver spots it… MOTORISED TUK TUKS REACH LONDON! |
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Dial-a-Cab driver Darryl Rosemeyer (G23)
was driving his cab down Fulham Road when, as he told Call
Sign, he couldn’t believe what he was seeing. There,
just in front of him wasn’t a Pedicab, but the proposed next
step up the dangerous vehicle league – a motorised Tuk Tuk! "I had heard that there was a danger of them coming to London and like most DaC drivers was dreading the thought – not because of any competition, but because of the obvious danger that these vehicles would pose on the road. I followed it and took a photo and video with my phone before ending up by the Thai restaurant at Imperial Wharf, Chelsea. I couldn’t believe how fast it had travelled. I certainly wouldn’t have felt safe in it." Darryl parked his cab away from the restaurant and went over to the driver to ask about the Tuk Tuk – not mentioning that he was a taxi driver. "He told me the restaurant had bought two of them for £9000 each and were using them to ferry their customers to and from Imperial Wharf. If London gets |
 Darryl spots the first motorised Tuk Tuk to arrive in London |
Celeste added: "They offer little or no protection in the event of
an accident, so passengers could be at risk of serious injury.
Neither are they accessible to wheelchair users." She also queried whether the drivers had to go through the same standard police checks that ordinary taxi drivers do and ended by telling Call Sign: "The introduction of these vehicles to our streets is a step backwards in terms of the quality of vehicle that passengers can use. We would like to see any vehicle licensed to carry passengers meeting a strict set of safety and accessibility standards, along the same lines as the black cabs do in London." Frighteningly, a spokesperson for TucTuc Ltd told Call Sign that their vehicle was definitely earmarked for a London launch in May and added that the vehicles were "environmentally friendly and ran on compressed natural gas with super-low emissions and would offer tourists and shoppers a safe, economical and environmentally friendly means of getting around congested cities." And he sounded as though he believed it! |
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flooded with these things, they
will make life impossible for everyone else on the road…" Taxiwise have recently warned about the proposed London launch (said to be May 2007) and a spokesperson for the organisation, Celeste Clarke, told Call Sign following the Brighton launch: "It is of particular note that one of the main safety features on the imported vehicles highlighted at the launch was the inclusion of driver and passenger seatbelts. These have been a legal requirement for more than 20 years! Every vehicle has to have them and if that is being highlighted as a main safety point, perhaps questions should be asked about the appropriateness of these vehicles for English roads." |
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DIESEL EMISSION REDUCTION KITS Disclaimer causing concerns… |
| London taxi operators and
drivers who choose to fit Euro III exhaust emission kits to
older vehicles, are worried by a disclaimer issued by at
least one of the approved fitting centres. Some owners and drivers feel that because the diesel pump has to be re-timed and new injectors fitted as part of the conversion process, these changes might lead to damage which is not covered by the warranties provided by the emission kit manufacturers or the companies that fit them. The offending disclaimer states that the fitment of the emission system is entirely at the owner's risk as no responsibility will be accepted for poor performance, damage or loss of earnings due to engine, rear main seal or gearbox condition. The kits themselves are covered by manufacturers warranty, in the case of van Aaken Developments Limited; 12 months with no mileage limit and three-years cover for the Electronic Control Unit and rear exhaust system, but the engine of the vehicle is not protected. Van Aaken Developments Director, Simon Silverleaf said: "We are supplying on average 20 of our kits a day through 25 approved fitting centres." David Miles |
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