richard_smith237

You've outdone yourself... It's utterly mind-blowing how anyone could spew such a colossal level of stupidity as claiming that not having an accident somehow justifies not needing a helmet. This isn't just ignorant - it's dangerously idiotic. You're basically flaunting an inability to grasp the simplest concept of precaution, as if accidents politely announce their arrival. Such a mindset isn't just laughable - it's a perfect recipe for Darwin Award-worthy disaster. It's impressive how you are so wilfully dense, yet not so surprising.

It seems likely that the same fools who admitted to driving under the influence in another post are participating here as well. Some contributors appear to consistently seek validation, trying to reassure themselves that their poor judgement aligns with a broader norm. Unfortunately, these polls often seem to confirm the assumption that there are far more idiots around us than we anticipated.

Where you live... your place is clearly a measure of tranquil serenity that the Op is clearly in need of... Help out the forum community and let the Op know where this silent condo of yours is...

Something to do with not being a total ayhole - I've spent my adult life here, I have many Thai friends and a large extended family here - I care about them. I don't like to see meaningless and unnecessary deaths in any nation - I think thats simply part of being human. IF helmet laws were enforced, more Families will not lose a bread winner, there will be far less emotional trauma. The WHO estimates that road accidents cost Thailand approximately 500 billion baht, equivalent to about 3% of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) - The lack of helmet use by motorcyclists contributes to this impact on Thailands GDP in several interconnected ways, as it leads to increased fatalities, injuries, and associated economic costs such as: Loss of Human Capital and Productivity, Healthcare Costs, Insurance and Compensation Costs, Loss of Consumer Spending, Burden on Public Infrastructure, Reduction in Workforce Participation..... there are also other 'hidden issues' that burden society with more children growing up with single parent families etc... the excessive road deaths generate greater issues which can only be noted once we delve deeper into the true impact. Perhaps... the mask wearing was also 'fear driven'..... Its still astonishes me that the nation paradoxically adopted mask wearing 'almost' universally, while continuing not to wear helmets - the mask wearing was policed, I agree the policing had little to do with health concerns and was another opportunity for a 'money grab' - Yet, its strange authorities do push for the same degree of social compliance when it comes to helmet wearing. Without consistent enforcement or a comparable fear-driven campaign, the discrepancy remains stark. It’s a missed opportunity to prioritise long-term safety over short-term gains. What you're suggesting is that people here forego wearing helmets simply because "this is Thailand," implying that it's a cultural norm. I agree to an extent - culture does play a role. However, effective enforcement of laws has the power to drive cultural change and shift attitudes. IMO, the apathy and complacent law enforcement fails to address the issue and actively perpetuates the high road fatality rates.

'We' - People who care about the country in which we live. The Law - Section 122 of Land Traffic Act, B.E. 2522 It has everything to do with the Police being lazy - IF every motorcyclist not wearing a helmet were fined an amount that mattered to them - this could be turned around. The police were 'not lazy' with mask wearing during Covid - it astonishes me that they managed to get everyone to wear a mask, while still ignoring the helmet wearing law. As per your comment on Vietnam policing - the police were very active and impacted significant change that has saved hundreds of thousands of lives over the years. So... why is Vietnam policing effective, but you still comment that this has nothing to do with the laziness of the Thai police ?.... Its its not laziness of the Thai police, what is it ?

Easy - I also see a lot of kids in the car without seatbelts, propped up on the lap of mom in the passenger seat.... (not all windows are so dark we can't see in). I would see a lot of my Son's friends turning up at school in their Alphards... they never had car seats... I'm not even sure if they use their seatbelt. I too brought over the Car seats from the UK - and now my Son is 11 and outgrown his car seat, he is on a booster bought locally so the seatbelt crosses his chest at a good height. Agree with this - if 'every older generation were correct in their castigation of the younger generation' we'd be back before the industrial revolution instead of making the massive advancements in tech.

Its because we care about the place we moved to... If we didn't care that people are unnecessarily dying, we would have no opinion. Its still the law here - and Thai's also have an opinion on this - If a kid kills themselves becasue they pull out in front of my Wife without a helmet on (while she is driving) - its not her fault, but a helmet may have saved them and prevented her some horrible emotional trauma. Illinois, Iowa, and New Hampshire - any many states also allow guns - a lot of people are sick of the idiocy. As mention above - its not an individual issue when it impacts society. Its not up to you - its up to the police and they are lazy - thats why Thailand has such a high road fatality rates. When 80% of road deaths (an estimated 20,000) are motorcyclists - compare that to Vietnam and the issue is clear.

When my son was an infant... we travelled all over (Japan, NZ, Aus, Europe) but living in Thailand and getting around without a car was pretty much impossible.... Taxi's had no car seats so that was never an option. When we wanted to go just 1 KM down the road, using a push-chair was never an option as the pavements were simply un-navigable... I attempted it once and the Motorcyclists would get annoyed at being held up on 'their' footpath !!!!... From then on, it was 100% car use wherever we went. Even walking down the footpath with a 5 year old is hazardous enough, we food vendors boiling oil at face height etc, street dogs, electrocution risk of street lamps etc etc I was suddenly on full on heightened alert to the safety issues. But, trying to get anywhere with pushchair here highlighted how difficult it must be for those with mobility issues, particularly wheel-chairs.... ... Thats why I think 'fair play' to the guys on mobility scooters using the roads to get around... they have little alternative, but have to read the 'ayholish' comments from miserable folk on these forums who refuse to accept these folk deserve their freedom of mobility too.

What makes it ok is that I never hurt anyone. And never have. Yet....

I have the Rev'it Airwave jacket - so its 'fairly breathable' and has airflow through when moving. But its still too hot. I also have the back protector inserted into it. There is no getting used to the heat when riding... I'm too hot when riding in 'just a t-shirt' and I'm a little more hot when riding in the Jacket... I used the car and sit in AC mostly these days anyway... the bike is for convenience just when needed.

I don't believe any of the 'green hype' behind EV's that they are more environmentally friendly than ICE's... the reasons why are a separate debate and have been flogged enough in other threads. However, I own an EV simply because I believe they are better than ICE's now, and yes, simpler to maintain. They are easy to charge 'everywhere' - charing at home means we hardly ever need to stop at a petrol station. If we are out, we can charge about 50-70% in 20mins - enough to have an ice-cream so no major hinderance. The 'greatest' inconvenient we have had with an EV was when the Wife forgot to charge over night and we had dropped to less than 30% so we stopped off at a PTT station and had a bite to eat - the inconvenience was that the Charging App PTT use had changed, so we had to download and register with another App... (that took an extra few mins). Our car gets about 450-500kms on a full charge - which is pretty convenient IMO. There is enough information that the 'fire risk' is much less than an ICE vehicles. - EVs: Approximately 250 fires per million vehicles. - ICE Vehicles: Approximately 15,300 fires per million vehicles. I get your point that EV fires are 'more damaging' - but, considering the stats the likelihood is so very low - its not something I am concerned about with our car parked under our house...

Yet you couldn't even wait 5 minutes before contradicting yourself...

100% always whenever departing outside of the Moobaan. If going to a main road, I'll also wear Full Face Helmet, Jacket, Gloves, urban riding boots... If just nipping to a nearby 7-11 or the local football pitch I'll use the open face helmet, I've never worn flipflops to ride and never ridden without gloves.

Even a basic helmet from Decathlon; whether for cycling, skiing, skateboarding, or wakeboarding, would offer better protection than those flimsy plastic contraptions. But, admittedly, even those are better than nothing. While I’m sympathetic to the economic realities in Thailand that make transporting children on motorcycles commonplace, the thought of a parent choosing not to put a helmet on their child is just so wrong on so many levels.... I'm not sure if it's a matter of lack of education or simply a failure to consider the consequences.... its troubling nonetheless.

Such absurdly idiotic comment that it fits perfectly with your usual level of reasoning.

Sure Bob Heres a clue - the best insult you could give me would be to call me MalcolmB....

We have a very hard rule in our car - 100% seatbelt.... Even the InLaws automatically put their seatbelt on in our car, the irony being when the drive away from our house, they don't wear a seatbelt no matter how many times I ask them. Years ago, when the BiB were having a seatbelt drive (no pun) we were pulled over and they wanted 2000 baht after accusing my passenger of not wearing a seatbelt - we just stubbornly refused as the passenger was wearing a seatbelt and the BiB was claiming they had just put it on (which was of course untrue) after a 10min stand-off the BiB must have realised he was missing further opportunities and waved us on.

It happens all over the world, get over it. Especially remote places, locals have free entrance and parking, tourists pays the bill. In contrast to the majority of Western nations, differential pricing is not typically determined by nationality but rather by residency status. Nationals of any country are eligible for resident rates when they can demonstrate their residency within the country. Thus, the practice of dual pricing, as observed in Thailand, is not a global norm.

Agreed.... let us know when you are on the road drunk driving.... and we can wear our helmet, 5 point harness and HANS device.

Fair point - If this is Bob, surely the Mods can view the IP from which the post was made and establish is this is another trolling account or not.... Mods ? is this possible ?

There is nothing imaginary about the lack of helmet wear in Thailand.... regardless of who posted the topic.

A rather daft reply if you are questioning the point made that few people are wearing helmets on motorcycles here - all you need to do is open your eyes to see this issue.

The handrails have always been there, you just imagined they weren't... nevertheless, its hardly wheelchair accessible or accessible for those with mobility issues, so your point remains valid without the exaggeration.

Slightly off topic - but a direct response to the comment on your Honda. Never bother trying to get a part exchange here in Thailand - you will always get ripped off as manufactures are simply not interested in them. A far better option is to sell privately on somewhere such as Facebook Market Place, also list your car on one2car.com A quick look suggests you should be able to get somewhere around 330,000 baht for your car (when sold privately). https://www.one2car.com/รถ-สำหรับ-ขาย/honda/cr-v/year-2014

For those willing to move beyond b!tching and moaning, there are constructive alternatives..... such as engaging in a balanced and thoughtful discussion.... isn’t that the very purpose of a discussion forum ? Take individuals like Richard Barrow, for example, along with others who have actively worked to improve conditions, making life more convenient for everyone. A notable improvement is the relaxation of the TM28 requirements, which many people voiced their concerns about and helped to bring about change.