By Kay Kimsong
THE CAMBODIA DAILY
Phnom Penh Municipality plans to block trucks from entering or driving around the capital for five days before, during and after the Water Festival, Municipal Police Chief Touch Naruth said Friday.
Touch Naruth said the ban should ease congestion during the three-day festival running from Nov 4 to Nov 6.
But the president of Sihanoukville's So Nguon Dry Port warned that the ban could delay garment shipments from being exported, potentially causing exporters to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars more to fly out their containers instead.
"If we allow [trucks] to come into the city, it will be difficult to maintain control," Touch Naruth said of the ban.
"We will only allow small cars and motorbikes to enter the city. We will stop all [trucks] on the outskirts," he said.
The ban on trucks will be enforced from 10 am to 10 pm from Nov 2 to Nov 7. Trucks will still be allowed to drive through the city during the night
Touch Naruth added that 7,000 police and military police will also be deployed on the streets of the capital to ensure security for the estimated 3 million people who are expected to attend the festival.
So Nguon, president of the So Nguon Dry Port, said the ban will inevitably affect exports. He added that if garment exporters to the US and Europe miss their export deadlines because of the truck ban, they will have to pay $40,000 to fly out each container, versus $2,000 to ship it from Sihanoukville.
He also said that 400 to 500 trucks will have to reach Sihanoukville by the night of Nov 4.
So Nguon urged municipal officials to allow trucks to travel through and around Phnom Penh during each afternoon of the festival to minimize losses.
Van Sou Ieng, chairman of the Garment Manufacturers Association, said the municipality should at least allow trucks to come through the city on Nov 4, because this is the shipping deadline for many garment exporters.
Touch Naruth said the ban should ease congestion during the three-day festival running from Nov 4 to Nov 6.
But the president of Sihanoukville's So Nguon Dry Port warned that the ban could delay garment shipments from being exported, potentially causing exporters to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars more to fly out their containers instead.
"If we allow [trucks] to come into the city, it will be difficult to maintain control," Touch Naruth said of the ban.
"We will only allow small cars and motorbikes to enter the city. We will stop all [trucks] on the outskirts," he said.
The ban on trucks will be enforced from 10 am to 10 pm from Nov 2 to Nov 7. Trucks will still be allowed to drive through the city during the night
Touch Naruth added that 7,000 police and military police will also be deployed on the streets of the capital to ensure security for the estimated 3 million people who are expected to attend the festival.
So Nguon, president of the So Nguon Dry Port, said the ban will inevitably affect exports. He added that if garment exporters to the US and Europe miss their export deadlines because of the truck ban, they will have to pay $40,000 to fly out each container, versus $2,000 to ship it from Sihanoukville.
He also said that 400 to 500 trucks will have to reach Sihanoukville by the night of Nov 4.
So Nguon urged municipal officials to allow trucks to travel through and around Phnom Penh during each afternoon of the festival to minimize losses.
Van Sou Ieng, chairman of the Garment Manufacturers Association, said the municipality should at least allow trucks to come through the city on Nov 4, because this is the shipping deadline for many garment exporters.
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