Is It Illegal To Go Through An Orange Light ?

[alacrity]

2 minutes ago, Almer said:

Wow thats some explanation 

Quoting best scenario conditions for emergency braking. OP took a chance and can't prove a win. So lost and can't take ownership for the deed.

 

Time to pay peanuts. Which is hardly an equivalence of a purchase of Kapi Luwak

[alfieconn]

14 minutes ago, Almer said:

Get a quality dash cam it will pay dividends when the government realise that fining  drivers of motorised vehicles is a nice little earner Rodders 

I have one but the bloody thing has only been working intermittently lately and wasn't working on that day, a new one is on it's way. 

[eisfeld]

A dashcam wont help much if the fine comes several days later. Usually people don't put huge sd cards in them that can record a week or more. Or you'd have to manually save the relevant footage everytime you think you might get fined.

 

OP: how long did it take for you to get the fine?

[tgw]

9 minutes ago, eisfeld said:

A dashcam wont help much if the fine comes several days later. Usually people don't put huge sd cards in them that can record a week or more. Or you'd have to manually save the relevant footage everytime you think you might get fined.

 

OP: how long did it take for you to get the fine?

good point.

[Samuel Smith]

6 hours ago, eisfeld said:

 

 

OP: how long did it take for you to get the fine?

Not the OP, but mine took 6 weeks!

[remorhaz]

17 hours ago, stevenl said:

We're having a serious discussion here, please stop this nonsense.

Take the corn cobb out of your posterior.  If you can't laugh at this place you'll turn into a bitter, boring old man... 

[RBOP]

Internationally its a called a Yellow light. 

 

Yellow Light:

This indicates that the lights are about to change to red. You must not enter the intersection unless you are so close to the stop line that you are unable to stop safely without entering the intersection or risking a rear-end crash with vehicles following you.

 

So looks like you are ate guilty as charged. However, if you can prove the light didn't stay yellow long enough (changed to yellow then a split second changed to red) you may be able to fight the ticket in court. But this being Thailand good luck with that.

[legend49]

Put it down to a win to the other team. To fight over 500 baht is not worth it. My country of origin would allow travel through on Orange but this is amazing Thailand.

[bluejets]

500 baht...pay the fine, stop next time and then get on with life.

Oh, and learn the traffic rules. You missed this one, I'm sure there will be others you missed also.

[BKKBike09]

You could just ignore the ticket. Many people I know do that and never seem to have any come back. Allegedly you have to pay them or you can't renew your road tax but I doubt that's the case. The police and Land Transport computer systems aren't yet linked, although they've been talking about it to bring in a points system.

 

Personally I pay all the tickets I get, most of which are for speeding. I just chalk them up to cost of car ownership. The fines are so low. It's nonsensical that speeding 3 km over the limit on a highway (whatever that's been set at) incurs the same 500 baht fine as 30 km over, but there it is. 

[easydoor]

Where and how did the OP got his driving license to ask such a question? He should have to know, and on the picture you can see, he could stop at orange, as he was still far enough from the crossing.

Pay the fee and drive safe and don't drive as a Thai who has no idea about safe driving or traffic rules.

[stevenl]

16 hours ago, eisfeld said:

The only sensible thing to do would be to have the camera take the picture at the exact time that the light turns red. If you crossed the line already you should be OK. Yellow light should be an indicator for drivers to prepare to stop if possible. That's what the law also seems to say. The the only thing the OP should do is ask if the picture is taking when the light turns red or after. If after then it's not evidence for anything.

 

That's all theory of course. Reality: pay fine and move on ????

"If you crossed the line already you should be OK."

No, that is not what the law says, you just made that up.

"Yellow light should be an indicator for drivers to prepare to stop if possible. "

Yes, that is what the law says, and is not the same as your previous sentence.

 

14 hours ago, alfieconn said:

So what speed is to fast ? 60 kph is hardly excessive and being approx 20 meters from the stop line certainly wouldn't be able to stop.

Correct, but you also wouldn't be fined in that case, unless the timing on the lights is off. But I very much doubt the latter. But if you want to claim that, and that would be your only reasonable excuse, go to the lights and observe the timing.

[crazykopite]

In Europe we say amber light in Thailand they say yellow light I know this as when I renewed my Thai drivers licence for the 3rd time I had to shout at the sequence of lights that appeared I was saying red , green ,  but they failed me because I kept saying amber they let me retake it when they told me I had to say yellow rather than amber . I have never heard of orange light which country does that come from ?

[rwill]

Thai law says that if you have not crossed the line before the light turns yellow(orange?) you must stop.  There is no leeway in the law.

 

Problem I see is that if you actually stop when the light turns yellow you run a high risk of getting rear ended.

[alfieconn]

9 hours ago, eisfeld said:

A dashcam wont help much if the fine comes several days later. Usually people don't put huge sd cards in them that can record a week or more. Or you'd have to manually save the relevant footage everytime you think you might get fined.

 

OP: how long did it take for you to get the fine?

 .

[luckyscruff]

I can not see the Time top right hand corner on my computer , but this will show you how many seconds have passed between the Two Pictures. this may help you ?  

[alien365]

19 hours ago, Vacuum said:

Looking at the photo, all the oncoming traffic had already stopped before you entered the lights. Pay your fines and be prepared  to stop at the yellow next time.

How do you know they weren't on red? A lot of traffic lights operate one direction and right turns. With the queue in the opposite direction it looks like it could be the case here.

[transam]

You gotta laugh, just got exactly the same demand in the post today, there is now an argument going on whether it was her or me driving...Of course she is never wrong...????

[eisfeld]

1 hour ago, stevenl said:

"If you crossed the line already you should be OK."

No, that is not what the law says, you just made that up.

"Yellow light should be an indicator for drivers to prepare to stop if possible. "

Yes, that is what the law says, and is not the same as your previous sentence.

I was speaking hypothetically, I should have made that clear. So yes, I indeed made it up :)

I know it's not how it works in reality.

[jackdd]

52 minutes ago, rwill said:

Thai law says that if you have not crossed the line before the light turns yellow(orange?) you must stop.  There is no leeway in the law.

This is not what Thai law says

[oobar]

I got a 500 baht ticket for getting caught halfway through on a yellow light.  The picture showed only yellow, no red, and stated the fine was for yellow.  So yellow apparently means no go.  Paid the fine and learned a new lesson about Thai traffic laws.

[Almer]

48 minutes ago, transam said:

You gotta laugh, just got exactly the same demand in the post today, there is now an argument going on whether it was her or me driving...Of course she is never wrong...????

When the government see how much of a cash cow traffic enforcement is it will be look out time.

[transam]

Just imagine the zillions of Thai folk getting the letter, well traffic light jumping is a national pastime...????

[LennyW]

18 hours ago, chang1 said:

When do you slow down - on green or on amber?

What does "prepare to stop" mean?

Who decides if it is "safe"?

At what point does "should" become shouldn't?

When does "could" become couldn't?

Running a red light is unambiguous, running an amber light is a grey area open to interpretation. That is why I have never heard of anyone being done for going through on amber in the UK. Thailand should not be using cameras to fine anyone, for this, if there was no danger to other road users.

It's quite simple, but let me spell it out for you...

When the light changes to amber you check your surroundings and prepare to stop, you do not gun it and hope you make it through before red....a concept lost on many people.

Do you understand why there is green, amber, red....or do you think it should go straight from green to red??

Nothing open to interpretation in this case, tho OP thought he would gun it and got caught, that much is clear from the photos.

Of course they should be fining people for this.....that is a big junction...by the same principle of the OP trying to beat the red, what if somebody else was a little bit itchy for the green...bang!!

There are road rules and laws but they seem to be lost on many people, i do hope you are not part of the problem.

[AgMech Cowboy]

I am not sure of Thai traffic law until now, but I know in Texas that you must clear the intersection before the light turns red. So to answer your question, it appears orange is not okay. Yellow, yes, but no mixing with the yellow.

[Jaxxper]

I think the rule is that if you can stop when it turns orange then you should. Speed/ distance etc. Of course you run the risk of the driver behind not following that protocol and ending up with his vehicle embedded in yours. I always exercise caution here because even when you’re light is turning yellow some motorbikes crossing the junction anticipate their light turning to green and just go.

I think I’d just pay the ticket.

[Tropposurfer]

Must make all effort to stop thats the law. Too much speed to be able to stop (as an example) of what some folks site as a reason for not stopping is not considered an excuse to drive through i..e we as licensed drivers are supposed to drive a speeds that allows for lights and be able to stop in time. The issues of cars up our rear-end should be a regular attendance issue as we drive and if tailgating is happening to us, to allow the car to pass by slowing etc so we aren't tailgated.

Cameras in Thailand ... their pictures and sequence of pictures is often poor and inadequate and thus difficult to defend against. The law will always side with the govt. agency in these cases.

i'd pay the fine, despite it sticking somewhat in the craw. Maybe write a polite and conciliatory letter to the head of the camera management division starting you had n o chance to stop in time on a yellow light and crossed the stop demarcation line and went across the intersection as quickly and safely as you could maybe they will waver the fine if you write this before apying it.

[NoshowJones]

19 hours ago, stevenl said:

Yes, you were able to stop but did not do so. So you did break the law.

There are no laws in Thailand as such, the law is what a policeman interpretates at the time.

The only real law on Thailands roads is genuine common sense, and if you don't have that, then you

may not survive.

 

I think we all know that common sense is in short supply amongst Thais especially where road

behaviour is concerned.

[Tambs2020]

Your kidding right? 

That picture shows you well before the line and a yellow light.. Yes it's illegal and Yes you should pay the fine ????

 

Lucky you or another aren't dead... On that note,  I check before going through fkn green lights in LOS as someone like yourself could be coming the other way and take us out ????

 

[transam]

22 minutes ago, Tambs2020 said:

Your kidding right? 

That picture shows you well before the line and a yellow light.. Yes it's illegal and Yes you should pay the fine ????

 

Lucky you or another aren't dead... On that note,  I check before going through fkn green lights in LOS as someone like yourself could be coming the other way and take us out ????

 

You know how fast or slow he was going then....?