While buses link the airport in the north of the island to Phuket Town, and some local shuttles operate around the east of the island, Patong and its neighbouring beach towns remain the “Wild West” in terms of transport – there are no stage-coaches, but someone “riding shotgun” may not be a bad idea.
Previous attempts to run a bus service linking Patong with the rest of the island have run smack into opposition from the tuk-tuk and taxi-driver gangs, who seek to stop anyone but themselves providing transport in the town – and at the prices they determine, no matter how unfair or exorbitant.
A fledgling attempt a few years ago to start a private bus service between Patong, Karon and Kata was forced to stop just a few weeks later, after a driver was beaten up by thugs and one of the vehicles was set on fire.
Similar efforts have been met with protests and roadblocks in Patong, and capitulation to the the town’s “transport mafia” has inevitably followed.
Hopefully this time it will be different. A company has now picked up the gauntlet – in the form of a licence to operate a hop-on hop-off bus service between the airport, Patong, Karon and Kata – but its backers want to stay anonymous at this time, for fear of retribution.
While the new bus service can only hope to make a small dent in traffic levels on Phuket, it would be a welcome start towards the development of a modern – and affordable – network of transport options, both in Patong and elsewhere on the island, much needed by islanders and tourists alike.
Hopefully the new bus operators will find the resources and fortitude they need – along with full assistance from the police and other authorities – to endure what’s likely to be tough opposition to their plan.