5% of checked CNG buses have failed inspection: DLT

The Department of Land Transport has found that 68 of 1,331 CNG-fuelled buses that have undergone checks were below standard and have been temporarily banned from the roads.
The defects were detected in inspections carried out since Oct 4 following the tour bus fire that killed 20 students and three teachers in Pathum Thani on Oct 1.
The bus was 54 years old, and its conversion to compressed natural gas failed to comply with regulations.
The department said on Thursday that defective buses accounted for 5% of the vehicles so far examined. It added that expired gas cylinders and equipment were common problems found.
The department said 12 buses taken off the roads were later cleared for use after their operators repaired the problems.
The operators of all the buses were given 15 days to fix them and return for another check.
Thailand has about 13,400 CNG-powered buses on the roads. The Ministry of Transport has ordered all of them inspected, but checks so far have covered only 10% of the total registered with the department.
Meanwhile, three young injured students are still in hospital being treated for burns from the Oct 1 fire.
The blaze broke out in a bus carrying students and teachers from Wat Khao Praya Sangkharam School in Uthai Thani.
It was later found that the bus operator, Chinnaboot Tour of Sing Buri, had attempted to conceal non-compliant CNG installations on other buses in its fleet.
Police have pressed charges against driver Samarn Chanthabut, the bus owner and the company owner.