MrJohnson

The miracle is that there are not more road deaths than there already are. This will take more than a generation to change and will require a multi-pronged strategy.

Laws that exist must be enforced -speeding, dangerous driving, drink driving - this just to mention a few.

Stronger penalties more breaking the law - including incarceration.

More visible policing on the roads - virtually non-existent at present.

Better driver education.More stringent licensing requirements - make it harder to get a license.

And on and on. Hard to see it happening though.

Stupidkran

Stupidkran - it just gets worse and worse each year. I either stay indoors or go abroad. But each to his/her own, but it is getting increasingly difficult to stay here in Thailand and be unaffected by it.

Get the immigration police to do a sweep of Sukhumvit Soi 1 through to Asok junction, both sides of the road on any evening between 10pm and midnight. They would need several 50-seater buses to accommodate those caught up in the sweep. Oh, and they would also need the willingness to undertake such a genuine sweep.

31 minutes ago, possum1931 said:

No, IMO, most RTCs ( Road Traffic Collisions) not accidents, are caused by the lack of common sense of the majority of Thai people.

Well you must know what they say about common sense?

16 hours ago, Nasrullah said:

I was being facetious...but one could be forgiven thinking this is the attitude of the thai people and authorities

Well, apologies. I didn't realize you were being facetious. I've quite a few friends who recognize the problem. As with may things, it is the silent majority that suffer and, lets face it, this is not a culture that encourages or even allows its citizens to speak out. It will take generations to change.

On 3/19/2018 at 9:44 AM, essox essox said:

IT STATES that there is  A BRIDGE.....THEY JUST do NOT USE IT

Take a deep breath Sunshine. There is no need to shout. The bridge is a considerable distance away and with the amount of foot traffic at that point it probably justifies a set of traffic lights or a foot bridge there. The bigger issue is that this is a miserable place to be a pedestrian, whether you trying to cross the road or even walking on the sidewalk and having to dodge motorbikes.

Zebra crossing sin Thailand, purely decorative. That one in particular is just plain ridiculous. I would guess that average speed along there is 60-80kmh. People simply will not stop. Either need traffic lights or an overhead bridge.

7 hours ago, mserror said:

And when you have crossed the road, you must be careful not to be hit by the motorcycles on the footpath.

Indeed! The crackdown on motorbikes on sidewalks  has been about as successful as all the other crackdowns.

Drove to Hua Hin and back last week. Absolute nightmare. The worst section is from Bangkok to Phetburi. Rama 2 around Samut Sankram is bumper to bumper trucks and lunatics in pick-up trucks. I saw a couple of accidents but saw a crazy number of near-misses. These were, as they almost always are, because of tail-gating. Most Thais have almost zero understanding of braking distances. If I were on a scooter (and I never would be), I'd be kitted out in all leather and a full face helmet. Visited a friend last week at Bumrungrad after he'd been cleaned up by a pickup truck  on a nice, long, clear stretch of road to Chantaburi. He's been riding here for twenty years and done well over 150K on a bike. He's still doing physio to gain his walking ability three weeks later. He's also in the process of selling ALL of his bikes. Go figure. Oh, and I forgot to mention, good all-purpose health/accident insurance and a go-pro on your helmet.

8 hours ago, Thailand said:

Probably simply reverting to part of a deal that was made 5 years ago with the current unelected incumbent.

Agreed. All part of a grand plan.  'Shutdown Bangkok, Restart Thailand'. Back to the future and same as it ever was. Except perhaps it might be a little more difficult than in the past. Keep your fingers on the trigger boys, there's nowhere to hide anymore. You can't incarcerate the entire opposition. Or can you?

It's like that river in Egypt.

Yes, like the boys in brown don't have bigger problems. Must take care of appearances. Very similar to the education system. As log as the front fence has a coat of paint it doesn't really matter what happens behind that fence.

A tried and tested method for stifling dissent. Unfortunately for those in power, it is much harder now with social media. Shut  down one dissenter and another  pops up. Looks very much like a slow-moving train wreck.

Follows a long tradition of young 20 somethings going to exotic places, getting drunk and acting stupid. Kontiki tours around Europe were exemplars of this in the 70s and 80s. Nothing new, but still equally annoying. They'll get a slap on the wrist and a great story to tell yobbo friends upon returning home.

Always very sensitive to criticism

We had a bunch (maybe 5-6) young backpackers (Europeans - but it doesn't really matter) spray painting the exterior wall of our condo in BKK - which runs along Khlong Saen Sap. When we approached them and asked them to desist they were really annoyed. 'It's public property' they said. Well no, sorry, it's not and we had just had it painted. It was tagged and spray painted. It wasn't really  to our tastes - but that is not the point. It wasn't theirs to paint. It was our property. When we politely asked them to stop, and we took their photos, they demanded we delete the photos and became very aggressive. One guy said to me " but  Thailand is such a laid-back place. Everyone is so chilled and nobody complains when we do this stuff.' Do'h! Just  because you've been here five minutes and a few people have smiled at you, don't jump to conclusions. Anyway, since they did their stuff the wall is constantly being tagged. It  is a pain in the neck. I'm not for 'hangin' them high' but I think a little respect is in order. Stay at home and do it - or better still do it on your own property.

On 11/28/2017 at 3:20 PM, Bob12345 said:

According to the hospital director it was one of his ambulances. So not a private one (with which you probably refer to first responders who are not part of the hospital staff).

Noted. thx.