More than 1,000 Pattaya motorcycle taxi drivers were given driving lessons and tested for drugs as city hall tries to clean up the streets.
Pattaya security boss Teerasak Jatuporn and municipal police chief Pol. Maj. Jirawat Sukontasap conducted the lessons and test Feb. 23 at Pattaya School No. 8. Staffers from the Chonburi Land Transportation Department lectured on traffic law that are often ignored in Pattaya, especially by public-transport drivers.
Issues include running red lights, illegal U-turns, driving on sidewalks, against traffic, and parking in prohibited areas.
The drivers also were subjected to urine tests, with those who failed being detained and their licenses suspended while they attend a drug-rehabilitation course.
Teerasak said the session was organized to improve compliance with traffic laws, reduce road congestion and improve the image of Pattaya’s public-transport sector among tourists.
Motorcycle drivers were told not to overcharge passengers and act as “eyes and ears” for police around town.
