Forget Uber, Iraqis strap into satoutas
Struggling to make ends meet, Iraqis have innovated a new means to transport goods and people for little money, which has been competing with taxi drivers.
BABIL, Iraq — In blacksmith shops and car garages, Iraq’s deliverymen and unemployed youths are building a local transport vehicle called a satouta (shuttle). It is the latest invention created by Iraqis to make a living and fight poverty.
The shuttle consists of a cart pulled by a motorcycle. Adel Mahmoud, a mechanical engineer in Babil, told Al-Monitor, “It is a hybrid vehicle that did not undergo scientific tests in durability or security and is being manufactured even at home, without quality control procedures.” He added, “This vehicle cannot adjust its balance on sharp turns, as it often travels at high speeds that are not in line with its technical and mechanical capabilities."
This explains the increasing number of accidents caused by these small vehicles. The number of victims resulting from accidents is on the rise, according to Babil traffic enforcement officer Ali Hussein. He told Al-Monitor that there are no official statistics on the number of victims, “but this has become a noticeable phenomenon among Iraqis and it should not be ignored.”
He added, "Every day either a shuttle turns upside down or gets into an accident, and people lose their lives.”
