From the observation of a professional driver, retired, and a holder of a Confederation of Australia Motor Sport licence, I am astounded at the average Thai driver"s inability to assess speed, time and distance - the essential components of awareness. Any shortcomings in any of these measures makes one an accident in the making. My personal feeling is that there is an antipathy to developing  hand eye skills in early childhood once again highlighting the inadequacies of the Thai education system. 

I don't care really.....speed limits are just talk here.....

What slow down to 120 !

I do. 

 

Thailand should go for the #1 spot in road casualties. It’s about time they are exceptional at something.

2 hours ago, canuckamuck said:

As far as I am concerned they do something about the slow drivers. Nearly every crash up here is due to someone overtaking unsafely. Why are they overtaking unsafely? Because people here don't let people overtake, even if they are 40km under the limit. 

Fact indeed! totally selfish drivers dawdling along cause far more accidents than speeding, but they are not such easy prey for the "haters" 

What’s new.  They already doing it, and more!!

I'm all for 120 on the main highways. Most drivers I see like to drive between 110-120. If you've ever driven from BKK to Chiang Mai with a 90 speed limit its painstaking. Driving BKK down south on Phet Kasem exactly the same. Even Boromorachachonani is now 90 and people randomly brake before bridges in case there's a speed camera on it. My biggest annoyance is the Sirat outer ring expressway. You pay to go on and have a sign flashing 60 or 80kph at you even when its empty. 

What is a milometers? Is it when you use miles per hours when the speed is in kilometers per hour? 

2 hours ago, canuckamuck said:

As far as I am concerned they do something about the slow drivers. Nearly every crash up here is due to someone overtaking unsafely. Why are they overtaking unsafely? Because people here don't let people overtake, even if they are 40km under the limit. 

are u kidding?  overtaking, rear end collisions  and accidents are from stupid drivers not being able to judge distance speed and unable to wait  NO MATTER WHAT SPEED 

3 hours ago, darksidedog said:

Even if all of the locals could drive properly, which is most unlikely to ever happen, a blanket 120 isn't wise. There will always be areas prone to traffic buildups, such as long hills where the trucks are crawling, where slower speeds are necessary. A more sensible approach would be to study the roads and deem appropriate limits, taking the stretches previous accident history into account. Variable limits work well to reduce speeds when the surveillance system can see heavy traffic ahead. All of this assumes of course, that the motorist is paying any attention to any road signs whatsoever, or showing them any respect.

A 120km/h limit would be applied on the flat, straight sections of major highways while on long hills a lower limit would be applied. I think that's common sense; is the same everywhere else in the world.

 

Already many drivers are doing 120 on major highways. I'm one of them. Would certainly welcome this - on some roads at least, such as Bang Pa-in to Korat/Nakorn Sawan and Dao Khanong to Pak Tho (Rama 2 road) after the Ekachai intersection.

 

As long as u-turns are closed and converted into u-turn bridges or underpasses, should be OK. Alternatively, a 100 or 110km/h limit in certain places would work too. 90 is way too slow, vehicles are built to much higher standards than they were in the 70s when the 90km/h limit was first enacted.

Some people do 200km along Sukhumvit why bother having speed limits?

14 minutes ago, alien365 said:

I'm all for 120 on the main highways. Most drivers I see like to drive between 110-120. If you've ever driven from BKK to Chiang Mai with a 90 speed limit its painstaking. Driving BKK down south on Phet Kasem exactly the same. Even Boromorachachonani is now 90 and people randomly brake before bridges in case there's a speed camera on it. My biggest annoyance is the Sirat outer ring expressway. You pay to go on and have a sign flashing 60 or 80kph at you even when its empty. 

Agreed.

 

Total absurdity. Who sets speed limits here? On Bangkok roads like Sukhumvit, the limit is 80, which is diabolically fast for that kind of road. I mean, even during those hours of day when you could reach these speeds (such as after 9 or 10pm at night and before 6am in the morning) it's way too fast - do 80 and hit a motorcycle doing a u-turn. Yet on expressways they have the same limit?! LOL! Do they know the difference between an access controlled expressway and a main city road?

 

Obviously Bangkok speed limits should be lowered down to say 60 on roads like Sukhumvit, with 70-80 applying on arterial roads like Kingkaew road or the one that passes Suvarnabhumi airport. Or Viphawadee Rangsit-road north of Don Muang Airport. However, expressways should all have a 120km/h limit, except in busy or winding sections and near on/off ramps.

Common sense is clearly not common in Thailand but I don't pay much attention to the speed limit signs anyway. I see no reason why the Bang Na-Burapha withi tollway should have a 90km/h limit when the Bangkok-Chonburi expressway has a 120km/h limit. I do 120km/h on both. But I'd be mad to do anywhere near 80 down Sukhumvit road. More like 60.

I agree with this, 120 is a very comfortable speed, for me anyway, but i have always thought that at slower speed people tend not to concentrate, instead gawping about at the scenery which causes more accidents.

1 minute ago, ChipButty said:

Some people do 200km along Sukhumvit why bother having speed limits?

But not on Sukhumvit road in Bangkok. That's totally impossible even at 3am in the morning. 130 might work, but would be suicidal. On the expressways, yes 200 is doable and I have seen it.

There's a speed limit?

only raise the limit if the object is as a population control.

NEVER !!!! one of the deadleast roads in the world want to increase HW speed !!!!???? Try to solve above maition problem first : Education , respect , responsibility !! 

4 hours ago, webfact said:

90 milometers an hour

Thai metric system.... ????

1000% agree on outside highways. And I drive a lot. 

Posted maximum (or minimum) speed limits are pointless, ineffective, etc., unless routinely enforced. Waste of time folks, especially in Thailand.

Ask a logical western = No

 

Ask a Thai = Yes

It’s not speed that kills - it’s carelessness, stupidity, bloody mindedness and falling asleep.

Never knew there was a speed limit

no no no no NO NO NO NO NO NO NO!!!!!!!!!

Life will not become cheaper for me because they always catch me with 140 or 160 km/h when I drive from Chiang Mai to Bangkok or back ????

1 hour ago, ifmu said:

are u kidding?  overtaking, rear end collisions  and accidents are from stupid drivers not being able to judge distance speed and unable to wait  NO MATTER WHAT SPEED 

Well it's a bad idea to no get out of the way when you know how many stupid drivers are on the road.

That should be the campaign: Be courteous and let people pass, chances are, they are dangerous idiots and you want them to get far away from you.

The one thing I can't figure out about Thai drivers, is when the fast lane gets a bit clogged and I am behind another car in the fast lane, the Thai behind me wants me to get over!! 

 

Wait a minute. I want the guy in front of me to get over too. So?! 

 

I have had Thai drivers absolutely flip out on this on many more than one occasion. It does not make any sense to me, but it would not be the first time I was wrong if i do not in fact understand some nuance to fast lane driving. 

Just take the speed limits signs down...hardly anyone pays attention to them anyway...????

Only on Pattay Beach Road!!  Oh forgot....no speed limit there anyway!!

Well, before that, I would introduce mandatory driving lessons for all drivers which teaches them to keep to the left lane whenever possible. Please also include the use of indicators; they are not for pure decoration only. Next would be to keep everyone buckled up and small toddlers on the driver's legs doing a 135km/h is also not the best of ideas. 
The 120km/h on Thailand's roads is slightly contradictory to Bangkok's reputation of being the planet's biggest parking lot.

But yes, do away with the 90km/h as nobody really cares about it except the police, completely covered up in helmets, sunglasses and face masks collecting bakshish towards the end of each and every month so the big boss can keep on being driven around in his big Mercedes Benz!