Parliament addresses road accidents in seminar

[Kwasaki]

2 minutes ago, trainman34014 said:

Dream on....ain't never gonna happen !

I hope you're wrong another kid dead our village riding ma & pa bike it has gotta stop, 8 years old. 

[trainman34014]

2 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Total nonsense. Another seminar, is all this is. I see people driving here, with their families in the car, and doing things, and taking the kinds of risks no rational or sane person with common sense would do. What for? To gain one minute? Why take those risks? What is the logic? Often, when I am cruising along at 100kph, someone cuts right in front of me. Or someone comes out from the side road, right in front of me. I have to slam on my brakes, or change lanes to avoid him. I look in my rearview mirror, and there is nobody behind me. So, if he had waited two seconds, he would have had completely safe passage onto the highway. What gives? Where is the intelligence, caution, and prudence? Where is the common sense? What about just the survival instinct?

You want to improve traffic safety here? It is all about catching people performing moving violations. That is what causes most accidents. And herein lies the deterrent. As long as everyone is allowed to get away with extremely reckless driving, entering the highway in front of an oncoming vehicle that is only 100 meters away, going 100kph, cutting in front of vehicles within one meter at high speeds, swerving like crazy idiots all over the highway, 40 year old cars and trucks occupying the fast lane doing 40kph, when other vehicles are approaching doing 120kph, drunk driving, etc, accidents, major injuries and deaths will continue to happen, and no amount of rhetoric and platitudes by the fabulously incompetent and insincere authorities are going to make any difference.

The police are not here to protect you. They do not care one iota about your well being, your safety, or traffic safety. Expect that. Do not employ them, unless absolutely necessary. They will never, ever take proactive action when it comes to traffic safety. They are either at highway clogging road blocks, in the air conditioned stations playing cards, or playing on their phones, or they show up AFTER an accident has taken place. That is all they are good for. 

 

If driving, especially on a motorbike, treat the activity as an act of war, in a sense that you may be mowed down or killed at any moment. Maintain eyes in the back of your head. Watch everyone. Expect craziness, insanity, lack of reason, and a complete lack of courtesy and respect on the roads, at all times. Expect cars and trucks to be coming at you in the wrong lane. Expect people to overtake you with the slimmest of margins. Only ride a motorbike, if you have many years of experience. Especially on the southern islands, where huge numbers of foreigners leave Thailand in a wooden box. Wear the best helmet you can afford. And drive like a grandmother. This applies to ex-pats too. Bring along an international drivers license, if a tourist, and a Thai motorcycle license, if an ex-pat. This helps you to avoid being fleeced by the local police franchisee. Many of us drive motorcycles or scooters here, and it is dangerous getting on the roads with some of these other drivers. Getting on a scooter, or a motorcycle anywhere in Thailand, much less Phuket, Phangan, Dark Tao, or Samui without a very good helmet, is like playing Russian Roulette with three or four bullets in the chamber. The degree of recklessness here is astounding. And many foreigners come here thinking "how much trouble could I get in on a little scooter, on a tropical island"? Well, the answer is alot. The amount of foreigners who are killed on the Southern islands is staggering. Most are not reported in the media. I had a friend who worked for Samui rescue for many years, and said the numbers averaged 30-60 a month, on Samui, Phangan and Koh Tao. The official number is about 3 a month. Rider beware. Use as good a helmet as you can afford, and do not use these eggshells pieces of <deleted>. They crack at the first impact, and what lies underneath them? Your skull, which is very delicate. Of course those numbers mean little now, as there is far less traffic on the road, on the nearly deserted southern islands. 

Just ask yourself- do I have enough problems already, without a broken skull, or smashed head, or face injury, or lost eye? I have two friends who have been in motorbike accidents on Samui within the last two years. One still cannot walk, or talk or function on her own, from a motorbike accident, where she hit her head on the pavement going only 20 kph. The other one has lost alot of his mental capacity after hitting his head. He insisted for years he would never wear a helmet. Now, he seems 15 years older.

Just a few days ago, I was driving along at about 110kph, on a good, straight stretch of highway. A safe speed. And some joker cuts in front of me with his pickup truck. Within two meters in front of me, then slams on his brakes. I guess he never stopped to look at the lane he was cutting into to see that there was no room for him! I slammed on my brakes to avoid the numnut, and barely missed him. Would have been a horrific crash. Why? What was the point of him changing lanes? Why didn't he look first? Who changes lanes without looking first, when they are doing over 100 kph? Why so little regard for his wife, and for others? Where does that mentality come from? Why do Thais seem so polite, yet when they get into a car, everything they have ever learned in life goes right out the window? Why so little in the way of common sense, reason, and the ability to be careful and maintain some vision? Why such idiocy? The apparent lack of skill and peripheral awareness on the road here is very scary.

 

Real men do what is necessary to save lives. Kids and highly underdeveloped people make promises, tell lies and engage in deflection, and hold seminars. 
Little P. - Moving Thailand backwards at a breath taking, alarming, and astonishing pace. The Thai army. The most regressive force in the nation today. 
 

You've lived here all this time and you're asking for the two things that don't exist...'Logic' and 'Common Sense'.   Neither will be coming into fashion any time soon !

[pokerface1]

All I can say is monkey see monkey do that appears to be the mentality of most Thai drivers. They just don't know of a better and safer way to get from point a to point b.

Perhaps they should just follow the GPS ladies instructions "Stay in the left lane for the next 50 kilometers you numnut"

[spidermike007]

6 minutes ago, Natai Beach said:

You shouldn’t be going that fast on roads with side roads. 80 and 90 kmh maximum is the law, apart from motorways where it is 120 kmh.

Slow down before you kill someone. 
 

The right column is the motorway only.

 

 

 

 

Total nonsense. On a major divided four lane highway, it is safe to travel at 100kph, which is slightly higher than 60mph. It is a near crawl on a major highway. The speed limits should be far higher here. Low speed limits do not encourage slow driving, nor do they discourage recklessness. They only create an opportunity for revenue, in the form of speeding tickets. Normally most cars drive closer to 120kph, which is still quite safe. 

 

The law means nothing to me, unless it is reasonable, and well thought out. How about the elevated toll roads in Bangkok, and heading to Chonburi? Is 90kph reasonable there too? 150kph would be safe, on those roads, for a skilled driver. 

[spidermike007]

3 minutes ago, trainman34014 said:

You've lived here all this time and you're asking for the two things that don't exist...'Logic' and 'Common Sense'.   Neither will be coming into fashion any time soon !

 

True that. One time a Thai told me we definitely have reason. But, we have Thai reason. It is totally different than the reason you Westerners have. I thought that was classic. 

[trainman34014]

3 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

 

True that. One time a Thai told me we definitely have reason. But, we have Thai reason. It is totally different than the reason you Westerners have. I thought that was classic. 

Guess that must be the 'Reason' they have no Logic or Common Sense then !

[hotchilli]

4 hours ago, colinneil said:

What a load of bo++ocks, hold as many silly seminars as you want, wont change a damn thing.

What is needed is active policing, driver training, not seminars.

Thailand can achieve seminars, actually tackling the road issue is another ball-game.

[Slain]

At least 10 YEARS of  road safety ads, including Clunk click, seat belt and various drink driving ads on TV and cinemas, made a lot of difference to the UK statistics.  It is a long term thing though, and costs money.  Eventually it does save money, and lives. Not to mention the horrendous injuries of the survivors.  The idea is to shame the people into following safety advice. We all no nobody likes to be shamed in Thailand. It worked in UK and elsewhere?

Edited November 15, 2020 by Slain
full stop

[Surelynot]

I heard two of the attendees failed to make the seminar......both were injured in separate road accidents on the way.

[overt2016]

A lot of these responses refer to driving on highways and are quite relevant.

However city driving is just as dangerous.

the complete in-attention to road laws and other motorists is abhorrent.

My great bugbear is the complete disregard shown to pedestrians by motorists. 

Faded paint on crossings, signage at only 2 metres from the crossing, the lack of controlled red lights etc etc.

[Surelynot]

4 minutes ago, overt2016 said:

A lot of these responses refer to driving on highways and are quite relevant.

However city driving is just as dangerous.

the complete in-attention to road laws and other motorists is abhorrent.

My great bugbear is the complete disregard shown to pedestrians by motorists. 

Faded paint on crossings, signage at only 2 metres from the crossing, the lack of controlled red lights etc etc.

All down to education...in Germany pedestrians and cyclists own the road......and it works.

[yeahbutif]

most of this could be sorted if the police did there jobs.why can't they see this?so so simple.would loved it get answer from a high ranking policemen.

[bodga]

Ill help you with the addresses................Everywhere in Thailand

[Surelynot]

5 minutes ago, yeahbutif said:

most of this could be sorted if the police did there jobs.why can't they see this?so so simple.would loved it get answer from a high ranking policemen.

He would want a small fee ....

[bodga]

Have  we  abandoned  mask wearing and distancing now then? seems  every  meeting is  mask and distance free,  just asking as we were  told  not to let our  guard  down by the junta govt

[bodga]

6 minutes ago, yeahbutif said:

most of this could be sorted if the police did there jobs.why can't they see this?so so simple.would loved it get answer from a high ranking policemen.

also if the many cretins driving  knew the rules even when the  signs often tell them, tonight i did a u  turn at some traffic  lights but a  guy on the other side of the  lights thinks he has priority to turn onto my side of the carriageway when the sign clearly states  he can go IF its  clear and safe to do so.

[ThailandRyan]

23 minutes ago, bodga said:

also if the many cretins driving  knew the rules even when the  signs often tell them, tonight i did a u  turn at some traffic  lights but a  guy on the other side of the  lights thinks he has priority to turn onto my side of the carriageway when the sign clearly states  he can go IF its  clear and safe to do so.

Just rode the motorbike back home to the Sathon Area from down past Samut Prakan.  Many vehicles were merging all the way across highway 3 from the Bang Na Mega Bang Na ramp Areas, almost all without using signals and driving at half the speed. Several near misses, and I almost got clipped twice.  I got off the main portion and drove home via Sukhumvit and endured more left turns from the side Sois where they just jetted out and all the way across.  One car sideswiped another as it turned out of a side Soi, didn't stop and took off.  Beggars belief it was done in front of two MC cops who stopped for the car that was hit and didn't go after the other driver.  Yes, I know there are cameras but if that driver was drunk or drugged they fudged that one up.

[NoshowJones]

39 minutes ago, yeahbutif said:

most of this could be sorted if the police did there jobs.why can't they see this?so so simple.would loved it get answer from a high ranking policemen.

There are no shortage of these, they just are not where they should be. They are too busy posing in their fancy uniforms and bling.

[Rodjrin]

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