By
Alex in
Auto & Transportation on Jul 5, 2006 at 4:58 pm
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Fed up with horrible train service (it only runs once a week and at speed not much more than walking pace!), Cambodians have created their own rail service using trains made from bamboo:
A tiny electric generator engine provides the power, and the passenger accommodation is a bamboo platform that rests on top of two sets of wheels. A dried-grass mat to sit on counts as a luxury.
It would be a white-knuckle ride – if there were actually anything to hold on to.
The bamboo trains reach about 40km/h (25mph), with the track just a couple of inches below the passengers. Warped and broken rails make for a bone-shaking journey.
But the drivers insist it is a safe form of transport.
"We’re very careful," said 18-year-old Sok Kimhor, a 10-year veteran of the bamboo trains. "We look out for children and animals running across the lines, and we have to slow down when other trains come along."
Link – via Fortrean Times
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