Natalie tour bus spotted on dangerous Phuket hill. It won't happen again, says tour firm

PHUKET: Despite an announcement yesterday (January 13) that buses working for Natalie Tour are no longer travelling east-to-west across Patong Hill, a Phuket News reader this morning spotted – and photographed – a Natalie bus doing just that.

The bus with the distinctive green Natalie logo on its side this morning rounds the bend at the bottom of Patong Hill where the fatal accident took place on December 29.

The reader then put the pictures on Facebook.

Natalie Tour does not own tour buses. It charters six from other companies such as J&W Car Rental & Transport, or Best Way Trip Co.

It was one of J&W’s buses that crashed on December 29 with the loss of two lives.

After the crash Natalie Tour and the bus owners decided that their buses would no longer make the trip down the steep and winding section of Patong Hill near Wat Suwankiriwong.

Prasit Sornwattana, Phuket General Manager of Natalie Tour, said that the company has a new policy not to send buses over Patong Hill from east to west.

However, he said, “This morning a driver from Best Way Trip went over the hill.”

The manager of Best Way did not return calls this morning, but a member of the company’s staff told The Phuket News, “The bus went in for repair before the accident [of December 29] and this was the first time that it and the driver had been on the road since then.

“A notice telling the driver that he was not to use Patong Hill east-west was prepared, but he left this morning before we could give it to him.

“It won’t happen again.”