Road authorities to act against three-wheelers in Arakan State

By DMG 23 Oct 2022

DMG Newsroom
23 October 2022, Sittwe

The Arakan State Road Transport Administration Department has warned that it will soon begin seizing unlicensed three-wheeled taxis in the state.

While the drivers of such vehicles often breach traffic rules and regulations, three-wheelers are not allowed under the law to drive on roads, said the head of Arakan State’s Road Transport Administration Department, U Kan Nyunt.

“Owners can apply for licences for their motorbikes, but they are not allowed to attach a sidecar to their motorcycles. If they do so, we will seize it,” U Kan Nyunt told DMG.

To run auto rickshaws, locally known as tuk-tuks, for transportation services, drivers must have both a driver’s licence and an operating licence. Otherwise, they are categorised as private vehicles and are subject to impoundment if they are used to transport paying passengers, according to the state’s Road Transport Administration Department.

A three-wheeled taxi driver said: “We only have this job for our livelihoods during this difficult time. They don’t issue licences, and said they would seize our bikes if licences expired. It is unacceptable.”

Commuters have complained that they will face difficulties if such a crackdown is carried out on tuk-tuk transportation services, which were introduced in Arakan State just six years ago.

“Auto rickshaws are the most easily available means of transport in Arakan State,” said student Ko Maung Myat Aung from Sittwe University. “We go to university by auto rickshaw. The move will not only create inconveniences for commuters, but also harm the livelihoods of auto rickshaw drivers.”

A group of three-wheeler drivers have asked since 2019 to be issued licences for their vehicles, but the Road Transport Administration Department has rejected those requests, saying licences would not be issued for them because they were not manufactured by government-recognised factories.

There is a significant population of people who make a living driving auto rickshaws in the Arakan State capital and beyond. In Sittwe alone, there are more than 1,300 three-wheelers, according to drivers.