KHON KAEN: A songtaew driver photographed playing a game on his phone for about 10 kilometres, while his horrified passengers watched through the vehicle's cabin window faces legal action and could lose his licence and his livelihood.
Photos of the driver playing an ROV card game on his mobile phone were posted on Facebook by passenger Yutthana Poompeerm, 22, on Monday, and quickly went viral, drawing harsh criticism of him for his foolishness.
Mr Yutthana, 22, of Nong Rua district, told the Bangkok Post he was one of the passengers who boarded the songtaew at Khon Khaen bus terminal 3, en route to Nong Rua district, around noon on Monday.
A little while after leaving the terminal he began to feel something unusual was going on as the vehicle was moving very slowly. He peered through the window into the driver's cabin and saw the man was intent on playing a game on his phone while driving.
“The driver went very slowly from the bus terminal to an intersection on Mittrapap Road in Muang district, a distance of about 10km.
"He showed no worry about having an accident or endangering his passengers while playing a game on his mobile phone," Mr Yutthana said.
"I then took pictures of him and posted them on my Facebook, where they was quickly seen and shared by many people.
"At the time I did not alert any agency, but was most anxious for about 10km. I and the other passengers sighed with relief when he finally stopped playing.’’
The green songtaew vehicle, which operated on the Khon Kaen-Nong Rua route, was driven by Nawatchapong Khruechompoo.
Viroj Wiriyachan, chief of Khon Kaen provincial transport office, said he had ordered a fact-finding probe into the incident. It appeared the driver had committed some serious offences.
If the report was correct, the driver would have his driving licence confiscated and be suspended from driving passenger vehicles.
On top of this, he would be charged with driving without care for the safety of passengers. If the songtaew belonged to him, it would be ordered off the road. The owner would face legal action, including a possible jail term and fines, for violations of the Land Transport Act, Mr Viroj said.
Viroj Wiriyachan, chief of Khon Kaen provincial transport office, said the Songtaew driver faces legal action for playing a video game while behind the wheel. (Photo by Chakkrapan Natanri)