The inconvenience of being eco

The idea was and still is very charming, let Thai (electrical) Tuk Tuks drive around the city. That means less CO2 emissions than the 'normal' taxi and adds an exotic touch to the city. The Dutch company ‘Tuk Tuk Company’ has Tuk Tuks driving around in several cities in the Netherlands, including Rotterdam.
But how practical is this alternative transportation? Last year I tested it... with the mayor of Rotterdam: Ahmed Aboutaleb.

First I need to explain

The mayor of Rotterdam, ready for his Tuk Tuk adventure.

The mayor supports this initiative and that’s why he decided to help us wrapping up presents in the shop as a public attraction. In the morning he visited the shop in the south of Rotterdam, in the afternoon he went to the shop in the city centre. How did he get there? Of course by Tuk Tuk, transportation matching the atmosphere of the Wereldwinkel.

That’s how I ended up in the Tuk Tuk with the mayor. The greenest vehicle we could find. The rickshaw (which we also have in Rotterdam) was not an option, because it was most likely that it would take the rickshaw driver about 40 minutes to drive to the other side of town with two adult persons in his vehicle.

So we picked the Tuk Tuk, which is nice to look at. Thus, there you have also tackled the biggest advantage of this transport: only the view is nice.

For two adults, there is plenty of room back in the Tuk Tuk. And that's nice, because rubbing your thigh against the mayors is not too pleasant.
Still, the Tuk Tuk is a nice picture, riding is a different story.

It was late September and still pretty warm when the mayor and I boarded, so the driver decided to leave the plastic ‘doors’ open. Nice cool breeze? Not exactly. With a speed of about 50 kilometres per hour, that creates a noise which makes a normal conversation impossible. And it’s cold, as the Dutch temperatures not quite match the Thai.

In this noise, the mayor told (shouted) about his life, taught me that a date (the fruit) contains more energy than Red Bull and that his Moroccan mother always gave him bread with olive oil and salt for breakfast. Very nutritious.

Detailed talks on Fairtrade, which was the plan, weren’t possible. Because the volume of my voice would make it more preachy than just informative.

After twenty minutes we arrived at our destination. The mayor restyled his hair and stepped out of the Tuk Tuk as if he just had a really comfortable ride. He’s probably used to fluently adapting to every situation.

The experience made me realize why the Tuk Tuk is not yet widely used as a taxi. It is not practical. The Tuk Tuk Company therefore mainly rents out the Tuk Tuks for special events. Only in Overschie, a district in the north of Rotterdam, electrical Tuk Tuks are available every day, free as a service to residents and visitors. But as soon as the money of this district runs out, I wonder how often we Tuk Tuks will be seen driving around town.