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Mike Hughes · December 3rd 08, 12:16 AM posted to uk.transport.london

In message ,
writes
"Mike Hughes" wrote in message
...
In message ,
writes

You can say that again. If you'd seen the reports on the safety (or lack
of) record of the Tuc Tuc's you'd be very worried. There was even one
occasion when one of these turned over. The owner of the company tried to
put a positive spin on the whole incident by claiming that the fact no one
was injured showed that the 'safety enhancements' (seat belts required by
law) he'd had fitted to the vehicles had made then safer. He conveniently
overlooked the fact that the thing had turned over at a relatively low
speed and it was just luck that there was no serious injury - unlike the
poor soul who is (was?) in a semi vegetive state as a result of an
accident that occurred in Queen Street, Brighton

What happened at Queen Street?

The vehicle overturned, the passenger was thrown out and suffered head
injuries.

Was there no effort to check the safety of the tuc tucs before they went
into revenue service?

The whole affair seems to have been covered in some sort of 'fog' in
many ways. They could net get licensed as taxis but managed to get
licensed as 'stage coach' buses. The owner, Dominic Ponniah, had been a
Tory candidate for a parliamentary seat in Leeds. VOSA's headquarters is
in Leeds. There were a lot of unusual 'coincidences'. One thing for sure
is that the company broke several of their licensing conditions and were
fined heavily.

The whole thing had a great deal of controversy to say the least

--
Mike Hughes
A Taxi driver licensed for London and Brighton
at home in Tarring, West Sussex, England
Interested in American trains real and model?
Look here http://mikehughes627.fotopic.net/