Green-thumbed Thai cabbies turn taxis into gardens amid COVID-19 crunch

JACK TAYLOR / AFP

With demand for taxis drying up in Thailand and thousands of drivers leaving town, one Bangkok cab company has turned its vehicles into mini vegetable gardens, hoping to take the edge off the coronavirus crunch.

The Ratchapruek Taxi Cooperative has taken hundreds of cars off the road in the past year amid a slowing economy worsened by months of lockdown to prevent the spread of COVID-19, which has left many drivers with insufficient income to pay the lease on their vehicles.

The cooperative grows vegetables on the roofs and bonnets of 300 of the disused cabs, providing its drivers and members with food to share while sending a message to the government to do more to help with the hardship.

"We discussed among each other and decided to grow vegetables to eat because there is no use for these taxis," said Thapakorn Asawalertkul, a business consultant for the company.

"They have become just metal as they've been parking for over a year now."

Thailand has recorded more than 1.5 million coronavirus cases and 15,600 deaths, 99 per cent of those since April this year. Just 21 per cent of the population has been vaccinated.

On hundreds of pink and orange taxis, chilis, eggplants, cucumbers and basil leaves sprout from soil contained in black plastic sheeting reinforced with bamboo or wooden poles.

Kamolporn Boonnitiyong, an administrator with the company, said though the gardens keep people occupied, they are only a temporary fix.

"To a certain extent, it has helped with lessening our stress but it isn't really the answer," Kamolporn said.

More from Quirky

  • Climber sets new Mount Everest record

    A Nepali guide has broken his own record for most climbs of Mount Everest the world's highest mountain, having reached the summit for the 29th time.

  • Police snap into action after 'croc' sighting

    Police called to reports of a crocodile seen in flood water near an English village have escaped unharmed after discovering locals were fooled by a replica.

  • T. rex is at center of debate over dinosaur intelligence

    Surmising even the physical appearance of a dinosaur - or any extinct animal - based on its fossils is a tricky proposition, with so many uncertainties involved. Assessing a dinosaur's intelligence, considering the innumerable factors contributing to that trait, is exponentially more difficult.

  • Horses run amok in central London

    A number of horses are running amok in London and at least one person has been injured, with the army called in to help locate the animals, authorities in the British capital said on Wednesday.

  • Kishida delights Washington with promise of 250 cherry trees as gift

    Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida drew cheers and applause from US lawmakers on Thursday when he announced a plan to donate 250 cherry trees to the US capital to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the US independence.