Slaughter on the roads

By Kanjana Lao 
Nation Graphics

 

Nation Graphics /Kanjana Lao

 

Thailand has seen a decline in deaths caused by traffic accidents over the past five years. However, it is still ranked high globally in terms of road casualties related to motorcycles.

 

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30361301

 

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2018-12-29

Nice pie chart,looks like they have it all figured out ....sorry, nothing will change.. we have selective law enforcement combined with lawless defiant drivers which leads to this endless cycle of carnage...but the good news is old  Prawit is man of the year...

Thailand will never get their act together as far as regulating and maintaining proper driving rules and etiquette.

The system is way too corrupt and out of control.  

It's like gun control in America...it'll never happen.

Number 9 - Free school buses financed by the state would alleviate the problem of underage children riding three and more on a bike........BUT..................who are they going to get to drive them safely......

The numbers suggest an improvement this last year; I have not noticed any change in the me-first selfish driving coupled with no brain plus no police.

If you believe the diagrams above, the place is seriously dangerous. With the graph in the top left corner, citing deaths per 100,000 population, it states 22,491 this year, which would equate to almost a quarter of the population. You sometimes feel that it would have to get that bad before the lazy cops would get out there and start to actually enforce traffic laws, which is the obvious first step in reducing the carnage.

has anyone ever seen a scooter rider, stopping/ looking out for traffic, when shooting out of a junction, in  my years i here have yet to see one.. and why the hell dont they cancel their indicators, i can go out today, and on a short journey you can gaurantee i wil see 3 or 4 with their indicators still flashing

28 minutes ago, mercman24 said:

has anyone ever seen a scooter rider, stopping/ looking out for traffic, when shooting out of a junction, in  my years i here have yet to see one.. and why the hell dont they cancel their indicators, i can go out today, and on a short journey you can gaurantee i wil see 3 or 4 with their indicators still flashing

Last week i drove on the scooter and a car came from a left sidesoi...he waited for me but at the last moment drove onto the road so i had to make an emergency stop.

 

My indicators were sure off but i guessed he thought i would turn left....it became very dangerous here because they all are too stupid to use indicators and now nobody knows what they want anymore...indicators mean nothing, might as well stop using them at all.

As mentioned before on other threads, you can't cure stupidity.

Lets face it, there are a very large number of people on the roads here, who absolutely should not be there. From the kids flying around on bikes with no muffler, no helmet or license and often with half their classmates on the back, to those for whom running red lights is common practice, or pulling a U-turn without bothering to look to check it is safe to do so. There are those who just pull out and expect everyone else to make way for them, and then there are more who believe the road is a race track. The standards are appalling, and it all really comes down to one thing; Lack of traffic law enforcement. Right now all over Pattaya, there are numerous tea money stops, yet has anyone ever seen a copper nailing people running the lights or driving at reckless speeds? Without respect for the laws, the numbers are not going to change much. I could list some positive moves to immediately combat some of the terrible driving, but the police would not bother to implement any, as it simply isn't as profitable as their current activities.

1 hour ago, ThreeEyedRaven said:

and it all really comes down to one thing; Lack of traffic law enforcement.

That one is one of the major causes but it is not alone unfortunately. There appears to be some cultural issues also, for drivers/riders AND authorities! So, many issues need to be addressed and I agree, lack of enforcement is near the top, if not at the top! But substantial change is not going to happen anytime soon. 

 

Any 'farang' living in Thailand has the opportunity to 'advise' family and friends about 'stay alive' road safety. 

4 hours ago, mok199 said:

Nice pie chart,looks like they have it all figured out ....sorry, nothing will change.. we have selective law enforcement combined with lawless defiant drivers which leads to this endless cycle of carnage...but the good news is old  Prawit is man of the year...

 

To make a difference, the Thai people must insist on people abiding by the law, and the police enforcing the law. Neither of which is likely to happen.

 

So the carnage will go on and on.

 

Go for it... If they don't care, why should anyone?

 

 

 

There's a killer on the road
His brain is squirmin' like a toad
Take a long holiday
Let your children play
If ya give this man a ride
Sweet memory will die
Killer on the road, yeah

Why worry, they are only voters

There's slaughter on the roads
Thai brain is squirmin' like a toad
Take a chance today
Get run down like a dog
Turn your dashcam on
Sweet memory will die
slaughter on the road, yeah

1 hour ago, ThreeEyedRaven said:

From the kids flying around on bikes with no muffler, no helmet or license and often with half their classmates on the back

 

You forgot to mention that many are often either smoking or talking on their phones or even both while they drive willy-nilly in haste to their destination and endanger the rest of the people on the road.

 

;nuf sed

2 hours ago, ThreeEyedRaven said:

There are those who just pull out and expect everyone else to make way for them, and then there are more who believe the road is a race track. The standards are appalling, and it all really comes down to one thing; Lack of traffic law enforcement.

I think it's a lack of common sense.

15 minutes ago, NCC1701A said:

There's slaughter on the roads
Thai brain is squirmin' like a toad
Take a chance today
Get run down like a dog
Turn your dashcam on
Sweet memory will die
slaughter on the road, yeah

Even though your poetry skills are that of a 10 year old who has just learnt how to do a limerick, it was still impressive nonetheless.

Things will change if speed cameras and traffic light cameras become widespread. Real moneyspinner so crazy not to

3 hours ago, mercman24 said:

has anyone ever seen a scooter rider, stopping/ looking out for traffic, when shooting out of a junction, in  my years i here have yet to see one.. and why the hell dont they cancel their indicators, i can go out today, and on a short journey you can gaurantee i wil see 3 or 4 with their indicators still flashing

The ones that pi$$ me right off are those on scooters that signal right but stop on the left to wait 'til you pass then cross over . Ok I know all of us on 2 wheels feel a slight sense of foreboding sitting in the middle of the road when Somchai any moment could come along on the phone and wallop , but if you choose to stop on your scooter before going right , signal left and stop , don't dither about .

Bloody raining up here and so that is my day and the ride to Nan with 'er indoors on the back put on hold !

I don't understand why people on here get so beat up about this. The Thais don't give a toss about it, why should we. Just chill.

32 minutes ago, BigT73 said:

Even though your poetry skills are that of a 10 year old who has just learnt how to do a limerick, it was still impressive nonetheless.

yes this is my first one. i was sweating pulling the trigger.

19 minutes ago, Psimbo said:

I don't understand why people on here get so beat up about this. The Thais don't give a toss about it, why should we. Just chill.

Most posters appear to hate male Thais, it's just another reason to bash them.

3 hours ago, darksidedog said:

If you believe the diagrams above, the place is seriously dangerous. With the graph in the top left corner, citing deaths per 100,000 population, it states 22,491 this year, which would equate to almost a quarter of the population. You sometimes feel that it would have to get that bad before the lazy cops would get out there and start to actually enforce traffic laws, which is the obvious first step in reducing the carnage.

I doubt the diagram above is correct. I believe these are absolute number total per year NOT per 100.000 population. Because that would mean 20% of the population would die in a year of a traffic accident. Plus just look at the deaths on the dangerous days you dont get high enough to even get close to the numbers it should be. 

 

( 65.000.000 / 100.000 ) x 22,491  that would mean 14,5 million people dying. That is 40.052 per day... that is not happening. So an other fail in the Thai media in critical checking of their diagrams. 

7 minutes ago, NCC1701A said:

yes this is my first one. i was sweating pulling the trigger.

I thought you did alright. To paraphrase the words of Oscar Wilde...."the poem was a great success but the audience was a total failure".

I am eagerly awaiting a contribution from Thai Visa's own Poet Lauriate, BigT73.

Still seems since the junta took power they lowered road deaths by around 15% that is a good thing might be one of their only good things.  But still plenty room of improvement. 

6 minutes ago, robblok said:

Still seems since the junta took power they lowered road deaths by around 15% that is a good thing might be one of their only good things.  But still plenty room of improvement. 

 

Really !! What exactly have they done to lower road deaths since taking power ?? 

I don't see any decline in road death numbers.. Official numbers released are probably far from accurate anyway..

3 minutes ago, cornishcarlos said:

 

Really !! What exactly have they done to lower road deaths since taking power ?? 

I don't see any decline in road death numbers.. Official numbers released are probably far from accurate anyway..

Just look at the graph and figures even if they are higher they show a decline. What they have done, the drink driving laws are certainly better enforced as b4 people could get off much cheaper and easier then now. Just look at the topics about drunk driving and people moaning how it was cheaper and easier to get off before. I know that I myself have seen more checks of alcohol since they came in power as before (that says a lot as i don't often drive at night or from bars and such)

 

So even if the official numbers are not accurate and are higher its reasonable to believe they are all off by a similar percentage. The decline is there with MUCH room for improvement.

Nothing will change until Thai people's attitude to safety in general improves dramatically.  They do not fear danger and it is not because they are brave....just too thick to do better !

 

There is also the small matter of the RTP being a 'Cash Collection Agency' and not a 'Police Force'.   Good luck to anyone who thinks they can sort that one out !

I'm pretty sure that I have read all the above posts (and those yet to come) last year, the year before that, the year before that........... ad infinitum ????

 

It proves one thing though, those of you that have said before "it'll never change" are quite correct ????