COMMENT: What does it take to change driving habits?

[webfact]

COMMENT: What does it take to change driving habits?

12 year old Chinnarat Kajatroka's death was avoidable and unnecessary.

By Tanutam Thawan

 

  

Yesterday we had to report the sad news of 12 year old Chinnarat Kajatroka who fell off the motorbike he was driving whilst his 12 year old passenger had to watch in horror as his friend’s head was crushed by a tour bus which was following behind. On his own admission the two were travelling very fast, apparently racing another motorbike that had three other school friends on it.

 

None of them were wearing bike helmets.

 

12 years old, travelling at high speed on a busy road, no bike helmets, no motorbike licence – a recipe for disaster and a cautionary tale. As is often the case, we didn’t share some of the photos sent to us with the story. The boy’s head had been crushed and his brains were splattered all over the road. While many of these graphic photos are still acceptable with some Thai media we opt for the western sensibility and not share these challenging images.

 

Full story: https://thethaiger.com/thailand-news/comment-what-does-it-take-to-change-driving-habits

 

-- © Copyright The Thaiger 2018-05-16

[keith101]

Maybe the police should have an extended blitz on underage drivers on motor bikes and just book everyone not wearing a helmet no excuses .

[midas]

Here is a clue for the Thai government at least to start off with.

In Vietnam (certainly in Ho Chi Minh City at least) its direct opposite to Thailand in that 99% of motorbike riders wear a helmet. I have no idea why they have a totally different psyche regarding this but it's certainly worth the Thai authorities investigating the dramatic difference.

[473geo]

Then we saw today a video of a 50+ year old adult pulling out in front of a truck and dying, his passenger also survived, no helmets - so is age as relevant as some would have us believe?

[grego49]

I believe the biggest problem is the police getting off their you know what and doing their job,in my city they have a blitz every now and again and get plenty but then you dont see them again for a few weeks so its back to normal,no helmets,unregistered bikes and cars.

[electric]

I have no answer to the question in the OP, but every time I drive anywhere, I find myself shaking my head in disbelief.

 

How can such a huge percentage of people be absolutely clueless on the roads ?

 

6.30am yesterday on my way to golf. Normal 2 lane rural back road. 30m ahead a 90 degree blind left bend.  Around the corner coming at me is a scooter completely cutting the blind corner and fully on my side of the road. Had I been 10m closer to the corner, a headon would've been the only possible result.

 

Last I saw of him, he was heading into the thick bushes at 50 kmph with eyes as big as dinner plates.

 

I just don't get it. The mentality that makes people do this sort of stuff.

 

 

[PatOngo]

1 hour ago, webfact said:

What does it take to change driving habits?

Pray for a change of fate? Look for a more powerful amulet?

[Just1Voice]

Not showing the photos?  There's your mistake.  The cops should make poster sized copies of them and show them in every school.  Then again, if you had REAL cops, who actually enforced the law 24/7, there wouldn't be any kids driving motorbikes, and everyone on a bike would have a helmet.  But that will only happen in an alternate reality, not in this one. 

Solutions:
1) under aged and driving a bike?  Confiscate the bike permanently, plus 10k baht fine for the parents, and a charge of "Child Endangerment".
2) no helmet? 5k baht fine. 

3) more than two on a bike? 5baht fine for EACH of them, and impound the bike till it's paid. 

[HooHaa]

it is not rocket science.
 

Stern enforcement and an effective police force.
high fines.

 

cumulative penalties resulting in loss of licence 

 

again a police force to make sure that everything is actually enforced.

[473geo]

Window tint does not allow eye contact to be sure a fellow motorist has seen you, this is important, time to remove window tint from windscreens and front side windows.

[300sd]

2 hours ago, webfact said:

COMMENT: What does it take to change driving habits?

A brain!

[bluesofa]

2 hours ago, PatOngo said:

Pray for a change of fate? Look for a more powerful amulet?

Forget old technology Duracell in those amulets. What we need is lithium-ion batteries - Thailand 4.0.

 

Sadly, what's the point of being serious about this subject, as we know the government and the population have very little interest in acting responsibly, or taking any of it seriously, so I may as well just take the p155.

I'm sure a lot of other TV members must think the same?

 

[Odysseus123]

What does it take?

 

Nothing.They are born,they live,they drive and they die.

[Psimbo]

I did a bit of a straw poll today whilst out walking. In 40 Minutes I counted (at least) 15 bikes with underage drivers and 36 pax- all helmetless.  Most of them were racing two abreast and one was standing up showing off. The youngest is about 8 and was riding a dirt bike on the main drag, which he does on a regular basis.

 

In addition I lost count of the number of helmetless mothers with kids on the back of their bikes or balanced precariously on their knees. 

 

I walk against the traffic and was  nearly clipped on 3 occasions  by people cutting bends. 

 

Meanwhile the cops are sat around scratching their backsides and doing nothing because the parents of these kids are 'mafia' or 'powerful people' within Kamala- it's all BS.

Edited May 16, 2018 by Psimbo

[observer90210]

How to change bad driving habits ?

 

No 1)  Teach them how to drive -

 

No 2)  Merciless but honest road law enforcement -

 

In other words, small chances that it may improve !!

Edited May 16, 2018 by observer90210

[scorecard]

4 hours ago, midas said:

Here is a clue for the Thai government at least to start off with.

In Vietnam (certainly in Ho Chi Minh City at least) its direct opposite to Thailand in that 99% of motorbike riders wear a helmet. I have no idea why they have a totally different psyche regarding this but it's certainly worth the Thai authorities investigating the dramatic difference.

 

Vietnam, a nation of logical and realistic thinkers maybe? 

[Pungdo]

The problem is that 10 year olds on Motor Bikes have no money and neither do the irresponsible parents that go into hock to provide them with said motor bike and for as long as the BiB are driven by how much they can make from offenders, nothing will change.

 

Back home in Oz, in the state I come from, we had a Royal Commission into Police Corruption, the main thing that came out of that, was the Police were not paid enough and the same applies here.

 

Many years ago when I first moved here, I met a Foreign police volunteer and he told me that:

1: They pay their own way trough the Police Academy and that equated to approx 1 years pay,

2: They had to buy their own uniforms,

3: They ride their own bikes and buy their own fuel,

4: They receive a pistol allowance, but it equates to rank and you could tell what sort of rank they held by the pistol they carried, ie: a Glock equated to a high rank.

5: The official fines handed out didn't go to "Consolidated Revenue" like they would normally do in your home country, but instead were split up by rank at the end of each month.

 

I also had a friend who had a Thai lawyer friend who was sitting in the office of the Senior copper in Bangkok who allocated where officers were stationed, he witnessed a rather large brown envelope being passed across the desk, when he inquired what it was about, he was told that it was a "Payment" to have someone posted to Pattaya, because it was considered that "Pattaya" was the most "Profitable" place to be posted, what kind of attitude is that for a public servant to have, it's disgusting really.

 

The way I see it the system just breeds corruption, so for as long as it stays as it is, the problem will never go away.

[midas]

Just now, scorecard said:

 

Vietnam, a nation of logical and realistic thinkers maybe? 

Well history has taught us that at least they are thinkers

[JAZZDOG]

Had a beer at a little bar at the corner South Pattaya Road and #3 Road across from Tonys Gym. It was 5pm Thursday and I timed out ten minutes. There were 218 various infractions, mostly helmets. In that ten minute span there was not even one light change that at least 2 vehicles ran the red light. Several times there were up to five running the light after it changed. There were many more, it was happening too fast to accurately keep up with it. That is 1300 per hour at a typical low speed intersection. If I did the same in Florida I might observe 5 in an hour due to cameras and hefty fines. One has a 350% greater chance of getting killed on the roads in LOS than USA. For a M/C the odds grow to over 12 times greater than the USA. People here wont wear a helmet but will wear a mask to stay safe from germs ?????

[Lacessit]

Apart from helmets, it baffles me how so many Thais have no eye protection on scooters travelling at 80-100 km/hr. All it takes is an insect or stone flicked up by another vehicle to cause serious eye injury, and possibly loss of control.

[Jonah Tenner]

4 hours ago, midas said:

Here is a clue for the Thai government at least to start off with.

In Vietnam (certainly in Ho Chi Minh City at least) its direct opposite to Thailand in that 99% of motorbike riders wear a helmet. I have no idea why they have a totally different psyche regarding this but it's certainly worth the Thai authorities investigating the dramatic difference.

In Vietnam they made it mandatory to wear helmets. After a short interval of time the police started to enforce the law, by confiscating the motorcycles of people riding without helmets. They did not get them back. The rule is simple: No helmet - no motorcycle.

The people of Vietnam got the point very quickly.

Edited May 16, 2018 by Jonah Tenner

[JAZZDOG]

It will be very difficult as long as Thais continue to exercise spatial awareness equal to an ant.

[kannot]

death, that  cures it once and  for  all

[JAZZDOG]

1 minute ago, kannot said:

death, that  cures it once and  for  all

But what is amazing is how long this guy has avoided death. Most likely had 50-60 lives already

[Get Real]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

COMMENT: What does it take to change driving habits?

That´s easy in theory, and the simple answer would be: "A body connected to a working brain"
In real life that is unfortunately in this area of the world still something that has to be found.

Edited May 16, 2018 by Get Real

[Boon Mee]

Pretty much given up on changing the driving habits here as carnage seems to be getting worse. If anything, people are driving even faster and more recklessly than just a few years ago! 

[jacko45k]

Irresponsible parenting allowing kids out on bikes!

[MrMuddle]

12 hours ago, JAZZDOG said:

Had a beer at a little bar at the corner South Pattaya Road and #3 Road across from Tonys Gym. It was 5pm Thursday and I timed out ten minutes. There were 218 various infractions, mostly helmets. In that ten minute span there was not even one light change that at least 2 vehicles ran the red light. Several times there were up to five running the light after it changed. There were many more, it was happening too fast to accurately keep up with it. That is 1300 per hour at a typical low speed intersection. If I did the same in Florida I might observe 5 in an hour due to cameras and hefty fines. One has a 350% greater chance of getting killed on the roads in LOS than USA. For a M/C the odds grow to over 12 times greater than the USA. People here wont wear a helmet but will wear a mask to stay safe from germs ?????

You forgot the ones who carry an umbrella, to keep off the sun ! 

[klauskunkel]

17 hours ago, webfact said:

What does it take to change driving habits?

the Police seem to think this will do the trick:

  

[madmitch]

We read about crackdowns on this and that all the time but I don't recall ever hearing of a crackdown on underage motorcycle riders. Why?