You’ve probably come across a tuk-tuk or a rickshaw on a visit to East Asian countries. A while ago, we stumbled upon solar powered rickshaws in India and a wind-powered one in Nepal. Well, Bangkok’s three wheeled contraptions get their share of renewable energy use. Tuk-tuks get their name from the noise made by the earlier models, and that’s exactly what the people of Bangkok love calling their 8,000 rickshaws. Colored brightly, these eye-catching modes of transport drink a lot though, gulping down those precious gallons of gasoline and natural gas. Now these rickshaws do look somewhat rustic, but give them a bit of solar powered glory, and they’ll go all 21st century like. Air Marshal Morakot Charnsomruad came up with his own solar powered version of the tuk-tuk which has grabbed a lot of attention.
The solar powered alter-ego goes 80 kilometers (50 miles) on a three hour battery charge. The gasoline powered ones go just 60 kilometers. That’s not all. The sun’s juice can drive these to a top speed of 60kmph, unlike the slower gasoline versions. Maybe Bangkok’s tuk-tuks will love a solar powered inside just as much as we do.
3 Wheeled Cheese 