Chiang Mai cops' cunning Christmas plan - breath tests in the pubs!

[webfact]

Chiang Mai cops' cunning Christmas plan - breath tests in the pubs!

 

Picture: Daily News

 

The Chiang Mai cops have announced their latest brainwave to stop the carnage on the Thai roads.

 

They will breath test drinkers before they have even left the pubs.

 

If found over the limit the boozers will be advised to take the bus home.

 

And if they don't follow suit - they have promised lots of festive season checkpoints to nab drink drivers.

 

Thaponphong Chairansee - the top traffic cop in the northern Thai tourist mecca - said that this will be a great way to bring accidents down and save lives.

 

Thaponphong was speaking at a meeting of police and other agencies who met with representatives from the entertainment sector and bars to ask for their cooperation.

 

The campaign is called: "Chiang Mai - Drink Don't Drive, Get Home Safely".

 

Following a Bangkok police campaign earlier in the week that concentrated on lowering speed limits, the Chiang Mai force have decided to focus on stopping people drinking and driving to help with the carnage on the roads.

 

Some 60 people a day die on the roads and many of those accidents are caused by alcohol.

 

Entertainment venues have agreed to let officers into their establishments to test patrons who if found to be over the limit for driving will be advised to take public transport or a taxi home.

 

The traffic chief said that he wanted Chiang Mai to be a safe place for tourists and one of the important factors that would ensure that is to have safe roads. And stopping drink driving will help in that matter.

 

But the cops warned that there will be plenty of drink driving checkpoints as well.

 

Source: Daily News

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2017-11-30

[Thaiwrath]

6 minutes ago, webfact said:

The Chiang Mai cops have announced their latest brainwave to stop the carnage on the Thai roads.

Brainwave or brain storm ?

I think most people will be aware of whether they are over the limit or not.

Unfortunately, giving them confirmation will not necessarily deter many of them from driving home, especially if they are wearing their beloved amulet.  

[Scott]

I think 'brainwave' is the wrong term.  Brainfart, maybe?

[Samui Bodoh]

So the Chang Mai cops are going to be pub-crawling over the holiday season.

 

That'll work well... 

Edited November 29, 2017 by Samui Bodoh

[Get Real]

I guess nobody else could have come up with this advanced and intellectual plan.
However, it should just be enough with checkpoints, stops and high fines. Everything else should be in the common sense of the driver.

Ooh Nooo! Common sense??? Did I talk about that? Must have forgot where I was! 

[trogers]

Those pubs would do well with buying a round for the boys in khaki with every person caught over the limit...

[sanemax]

Take away all the Thai bashing, this is a good idea

Trying to stop the people driving drunk 

[animalmagic]

It was tried in HK before a World Cup commenced, in order to show people how easy it was to be over the limit.  I tried the test and found that I was way under the limit; which seemed a little strange as I had consumed five pints of 5% lager in the previous hour (I was thirsty).  I knew that I was not right for driving but the machine didn't!

p.s. I took a taxi, the car was at home!

[tracker1]

What about if I dont drive ? and even if their over the limit the police will give free advice only to catch a bus , thats not going to work I know Thais they consider themselves quite capable of driving while pissed !

[namatjira]

They used to have 20 cent breathalyzer machines in some australian

pubs in the eighties, pop in your 20 cents, blow in the machine and the reading will appear.....great fun at the time with the challenge being in who could blow the highest level.....

 

[Cylon]

Don't knock it, At least they are trying to do something about the horrific road toll.

[worgeordie]

I think it's a great idea,breathalyse them BEFORE they get in the car,

if found to be over the limit ,take the keys off them,plus have plenty

of check points,the Police have got to take drink driving very serious

and not just on holidays.

 

regards worgeordie

[British Bulldog]

There's one small problem to this 'great' idea ... if thy are literally in the Pub, or standing at the doorway, and a person gets tested a few moments after having a drink, sure the meter will show that they are over the limit because the tester is measuring the amount of alcohol in the breath ... not the blood, where it counts. If a person ran up the bar, and asked for a shot of whisky, drank it paid and left, then was immediately tested, he'd be well over the limit ... but in reality, its not in his blood (yet) and he'd be more than capable of driving under the limit .... that's why in places like Australia, if you are caught 'near' the limit, your asked to sit down for a while and they go back and test you in 20 mins time ... the level of alcohol in the blood could be on the way up ... or on the way down !

[WinnieTheKhwai]

Quote

If found over the limit the boozers will be advised to take the bus home.

 

Which bus?

[craigt3365]

Anything to stop the carnage. Best of luck!

[steveyinasia]

40 minutes ago, British Bulldog said:

There's one small problem to this 'great' idea ... if thy are literally in the Pub, or standing at the doorway, and a person gets tested a few moments after having a drink, sure the meter will show that they are over the limit because the tester is measuring the amount of alcohol in the breath ... not the blood, where it counts. If a person ran up the bar, and asked for a shot of whisky, drank it paid and left, then was immediately tested, he'd be well over the limit ... but in reality, its not in his blood (yet) and he'd be more than capable of driving under the limit .... that's why in places like Australia, if you are caught 'near' the limit, your asked to sit down for a while and they go back and test you in 20 mins time ... the level of alcohol in the blood could be on the way up ... or on the way down !

Having worked on the Victoria Police Breathalyser replacement project your information relating to how breathalysers work is completely incorrect, they have nothing to do with testing the alcohol in the blood, they test breath alcohol levels using dual wavelength sensors. This reading has an formula attached to it to determine the relative % blood alcohol level.  If you were to blow in the machine right after a drink then would be a recording of "alcohol in mouth" and the reading would get rejected.  yes they do sit people down to wait and there are a couple of reasons for this, one is that it allows time for the alcohol in mouth to disperse and the other is to get a higher reading if the person has admitted to only just finishing their drinks as alcohol levels can rise after finishing your session.

[chainarong]

Undoubtedly in some western countries this would be interpreted as invasion of privacy and in any case unlawful,  undoubtedly their road deaths are much fewer than Thailand's,  best practice is to wait in car parks or out the front , the intention is then much clearer, they intended to drive,  especially if the clowns in brown tap them on the shoulder opening the vehicle drivers side door......................................

[Ulic]

I think that is very civilized. An education program of sorts. .05 is a very low

level. Many feel fine (especially those who drink a lot) They may not understand

that they are over the limit. 

[sammieuk1]

Father Christmas is real and lives in Chiang Mai and will keep me alive in the deadly silly season of drunken road carnage and this may help a bit you never know and we will find out if it works when the province death toll is released in January 

[Lupatria]

Wasn't there an article about the fact that only a fraction of the cops breathalyzer are functional? 

[Belzybob]

2 hours ago, WinnieTheKhwai said:

 

Which bus?

The one with the ya ba crazed driver of course.

[chickenrunCM]

3 hours ago, sanemax said:

Take away all the Thai bashing, this is a good idea

Trying to stop the people driving drunk 

this a stupid idea, 

first there is no legal right for the police to do this, they cant enter a pub and doing alco test, you can do this only with people who are taking part in traffic

second it will ruin the business of the pubs, nothing more turn you down as some cops who tell you you are already too drunk.

cops in a restaurant or pub is never a good idea, let them do traffic checks and this will prevent most of the problems and take the driver licenses  from the people if drive dunk

[smedly]

Nothing wrong with educating people and warning them but this wasted resource would be better spent on the roads stopping drivers, they have committed no crime until they get behind the wheel or mount a motorbike

[ChiangMaiLightning2143]

4 hours ago, namatjira said:

They used to have 20 cent breathalyzer machines in some australian

pubs in the eighties, pop in your 20 cents, blow in the machine and the reading will appear.....great fun at the time with the challenge being in who could blow the highest level.....

 

I have heard of cops in suburbs of Houston Texas years ago coming into bars (not called by manager) and arresting people for drunk in public, they were trying to drive the bars out out. Also if you do the right thing and take a taxi home they will tow your car away, from a strip mall with hundreds of open spots. Offense,  for "overnight parking", but that is a common in the states. Tow trucks are a huge racket. The Continental Airlines lounge at IAH also does not serve alcohol until noon on Sundays, a very strange place.

Edited November 30, 2017 by ChiangMaiLightning2143

[farcanell]

7 hours ago, Get Real said:

I guess nobody else could have come up with this advanced and intellectual plan.
However, it should just be enough with checkpoints, stops and high fines. Everything else should be in the common sense of the driver.

Ooh Nooo! Common sense??? Did I talk about that? Must have forgot where I was! 

That’s it then..... A 24 hour suspension for that nonsense! ??

[overherebc]

6 hours ago, tracker1 said:

What about if I dont drive ? and even if their over the limit the police will give free advice only to catch a bus , thats not going to work I know Thais they consider themselves quite capable of driving while pissed !

Yep, take the bus home and leave the benz outside the pub ???????

[hobz]

7 hours ago, sanemax said:

Take away all the Thai bashing, this is a good idea

Trying to stop the people driving drunk 

They have good intentions. But the plan itself is questionable. I think they should focus on more patrol cars stopping vehicles that drive a bit weird..

Everyone will know where the checkpoints are. They usually prepare the checkpoints a couple of days in advance so that its easy to avoid them on your regular routes.

[PremiumLane]

8 hours ago, sanemax said:

Take away all the Thai bashing, this is a good idea

Trying to stop the people driving drunk 

I have no time for Thai bashing, but this is a pretty bad idea. Hassling people when they are out in bars or restaurants - what is next? Pee in a cup.... oh wait :D

 

A novel idea, you get your licence taken away and jail time if caught drink driving, and no bribes - that is a better idea 

[trainman34014]

This is Thailand, so it figures that most piss artists are Thai's and the majority of them are not drinking in Bars around Town.   They drink together in back yards while they are gambling and in the small Bars around the Village's where the Policemen who live locally drink and gamble with them.  Many drive or ride home later completely out of their heads, seen it on numerous occasions and the next morning they drive or ride while they are still way over the limit.

 

Until the 'Authorities' get really serious with very heavy fines, seizure of vehicles and jail sentences for serious serial offenders, not just for drinking but also driving without proper documents, nothing is going to change.

 

Lip Service is no substitute for proper Police Service !

[oldgent]

go to the top of the class whoever thought this up . i fear the pubs will be empty.

why don,t the cops offer a free taxi service