Sunday, September 13, 2009

Managing Phnom Penh traffic

Apparently, there are four kinds of public transport that travel around the roads of Phnom Penh:
  • Taxis: Regular cars that take passengers for a fare. I haven't tried these, so I don't know if they are metered, flat-fee, etc. I imagine they work the same way taxis work in most other countries.

  • Moto (or motordop): Similar to taxis, but a motorcycle instead of a car. I haven't tried these either. I don't know if they carry one passenger, two or more. These are pretty common and pretty popular among Cambodians.

  • Tuk-tuk: A cart drawn by a motorcycle. It is a slow means of travelling and more expensive than just a moto, but more people travel with you for the same price. This is popular among tourists and Cambodians travelling in a group.

  • Siklo: A pedal-powered means of transport, very similar to the trishaws of Penang, Malaysia.
It appears that one has to hire the whole vehicle, instead of just having a ticket in order to use a seat. The transport will take you anywhere you want to within the city for the right price. I wonder how one communicates with the drivers before one has acquired the language?

There are buses in Phnom Penh, but these are for inter-city travel; not for going around the city.

Another way of getting around is by driving or hiring a bike. I don't know how one passes the oral driving test before acquiring language either.

I found this page useful though, while trying to understand the traffic system.

Have you any experience to share?

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