New Year travel poll: 92% of Thais most worried about Covid - fear the virus more than traffic accidents

[FarFlungFalang]

1 hour ago, vandeventer said:

The fear maybe with all these cheap masks going around. I was in Macro the other day and this girl in front of me a t check out wearing a mask sneezed and half of her nose juice came on my arm. She did say she was sorry!

Says a lot about the true efficacy of masks what!

[SupermarineS6B]

Well, that just about says it all.......  What is it now, 13,000 plus dead since January on the roads and everyone's bricking it over flu that's supposedly killed 60........   

[ronaldo0]

11 minutes ago, FarFlungFalang said:

Says a lot about the true efficacy of masks what!

Or she had a massive nose ! ????

[rupert the bear]

umm what to say,i just drove home and the depth of lunacy knows no bounds.as they say you can medicate the insane.educate the ignorant but stupid well u cant do nothing with that

[Bangkok Barry]

Many comments about the road carnage. And I've written before about why nothing will or can be done about it.

There are many reasons that Thais drive as they do.

1 - I have never detected any sign of common sense in a Thai, and I've been living here for over 25 years. I am not sure how you teach that, but anyway there is no movement to do so.

2 - The Thais have a Me First mentality that is deeply ingrained, and that is the last thing you want to see in a driver.

3 - The education system demands that you do not think for yourself but listen and obey, so Thais do not develop the necessary skills to actually think. That may result in my first point above.

4 - Learning to drive in a proper and responsible manner is quite difficult, and Thais do not do difficult. Thais do 'near enough', but on the roads that isn't 'good enough'. One mistake can cost lives, so being lucky enough to get it right most of the time isn't good enough either.

5 - They have absolutely no concept that the vehicle they are attempting to operate is a potential killer. No concept at all.

6 - Along with inadequate teaching of all things about how to drive properly and safely, there is no test to determine if you have reached a standard where you are not a danger to yourself and others before you take to the road.

7 - Thais do not seem able to join the dots, and realise that if, for example, they drive at 120 kms an hour five metres behind the vehicle in front, or drive at night with no rear light (or front light if they are driving on the wrong side of the road because they have no concept of the danger), then they would have no time to react if the vehicle in front brakes suddenly. Ask any Thai what their safe braking distance is and they would have no idea.

8 - There are zero police patrols to help prevent accidents by pulling aside selfish and stupid drivers. Their only presence is setting up road blocks which seems in my experience to have only one purpose - to check your tax disc is in the window and up to date.

9 - Police have absolutely no interest in enforcing the law even when they are static beside the road, watching kids three or four on a bike go by with no helmet, no license, no ability to properly control the bike they are on. And that goes also for the parents and schools who allow Thailand's future to play Russian Roulette every time they go out. The police know they get paid anyway, so why work?

10 - The government does nothing to resolve the road death/accident toll as nothing practically can be done. The problem began decades ago when Thais first began to drive in numbers. No meaningful test was introduced and enforced, and now it is far, far too late. It would mean retraining every driver (and who would do that - it would be similar to those who teach English not being able to speak the language themselves). And it would mean the drivers having to take a proper western-style test before gaining a license. And it would mean police patrols to catch those who drive as if they are playing a video game. Now, anyone can drive as they like and put themselves and others in danger as they know they have zero chance of being caught. They can drive that way with total impunity. And it would require said (non-existent) police to actually enforce the law. And not one of those things is possible in Thailand.

To finish, nothing can or will change and survival on Thai roads will continue to be a lottery. All we can do is remember the words that were used in the 70s police drama Hill Street Blues as the force were sent out on patrol - 'Let's be careful out there'.

[JAS21]

24 minutes ago, Bangkok Barry said:

Many comments about the road carnage. And I've written before about why nothing will or can be done about it.

There are many reasons that Thais drive as they do.

1 - I have never detected any sign of common sense in a Thai, and I've been living here for over 25 years. I am not sure how you teach that, but anyway there is no movement to do so.

2 - The Thais have a Me First mentality that is deeply ingrained, and that is the last thing you want to see in a driver.

3 - The education system demands that you do not think for yourself but listen and obey, so Thais do not develop the necessary skills to actually think. That may result in my first point above.

4 - Learning to drive in a proper and responsible manner is quite difficult, and Thais do not do difficult. Thais do 'near enough', but on the roads that isn't 'good enough'. One mistake can cost lives, so being lucky enough to get it right most of the time isn't good enough either.

5 - They have absolutely no concept that the vehicle they are attempting to operate is a potential killer. No concept at all.

6 - Along with inadequate teaching of all things about how to drive properly and safely, there is no test to determine if you have reached a standard where you are not a danger to yourself and others before you take to the road.

7 - Thais do not seem able to join the dots, and realise that if, for example, they drive at 120 kms an hour five metres behind the vehicle in front, or drive at night with no rear light (or front light if they are driving on the wrong side of the road because they have no concept of the danger), then they would have no time to react if the vehicle in front brakes suddenly. Ask any Thai what their safe braking distance is and they would have no idea.

8 - There are zero police patrols to help prevent accidents by pulling aside selfish and stupid drivers. Their only presence is setting up road blocks which seems in my experience to have only one purpose - to check your tax disc is in the window and up to date.

9 - Police have absolutely no interest in enforcing the law even when they are static beside the road, watching kids three or four on a bike go by with no helmet, no license, no ability to properly control the bike they are on. And that goes also for the parents and schools who allow Thailand's future to play Russian Roulette every time they go out. The police know they get paid anyway, so why work?

10 - The government does nothing to resolve the road death/accident toll as nothing practically can be done. The problem began decades ago when Thais first began to drive in numbers. No meaningful test was introduced and enforced, and now it is far, far too late. It would mean retraining every driver (and who would do that - it would be similar to those who teach English not being able to speak the language themselves). And it would mean the drivers having to take a proper western-style test before gaining a license. And it would mean police patrols to catch those who drive as if they are playing a video game. Now, anyone can drive as they like and put themselves and others in danger as they know they have zero chance of being caught. They can drive that way with total impunity. And it would require said (non-existent) police to actually enforce the law. And not one of those things is possible in Thailand.

To finish, nothing can or will change and survival on Thai roads will continue to be a lottery. All we can do is remember the words that were used in the 70s police drama Hill Street Blues as the force were sent out on patrol - 'Let's be careful out there'.

I don’t think you should tar every Thai with the same brush, but certainly the majority.  Mrs.J has a UK driving license and drove in the UK for several years.

 

She has done both MB and Volvo test days. She told me the instructor was quite impressed. I think he meant he was impressed that the car never turned over...????

 

But you make some very valid points and yes I can’t ever see things changing unfortunately.

 

Daily, the motorbike comes past at high speed,  weaving in and out of the traffic... another guy waiting to die...

 

PS...actually we are both, at present, more worried about Cov-19 than dying on the roads...no golfing trip to Chiang Mai area this Christmas or New Year....holiday time we do travel the day before the herd ...or not at all.

[Susco]

3 minutes ago, JAS21 said:

She has done both MB and Volvo test days. She told me the instructor was quite impressed. I think he meant he was impressed that the car never turned over...

 

I recall several years ago, when I had to be in the Chonburi department for registering a bike, that during the waiting time I watched where they took the practical test for driving license.

 

They had to drive through a straight line of traffic cones, then at the end reverse though that same line of traffic cones.

 

Not sure if i should have laughed or cried watching that.

 

Brings me to another question. When I use the roads anywhere in Thailand, I think the owner of the company that manufactures those traffic cones, must be a billionaire multiple time over

[Surelynot]

I don't believe Thais have any fear,  whatsoever, of road accidents.......you can tell from the way they drive.

[Bangkok Barry]

15 minutes ago, JAS21 said:

I don’t think you should tar every Thai with the same brush, but certainly the majority.  Mrs.J has a UK driving license and drove in the UK for several years.

 

I'm not doing that, but the figures speak for themselves. My own wife is an excellent driver and I have no doubt she would pass a test in the UK. She is particularly good at looking far ahead for idiots. Not sure though that she would have been able to avoid a woman that her sister-in-law killed earlier this month after she pulled out of a side road on her motorcycle looking just one way instead of both. You just have to wonder what goes through their mind - if anything.

[Magenta408]

"This year so far, 933,173 people have been injured and 14,161 killed in road accidents. Yesterday alone, there were 75 reported deaths on the roads. 60 of these were motorcyclists. Yesterday, six children and one foreigner also died on the roads."
 BP

The mask huggers are getting rich off Covid or not the brightess spark plugs about. Maybe one owns a golf course and others flea bag hotels where the charge people a <deleted>-pot full of money to "quarantine". 

[RocketDog]

9 hours ago, darksidedog said:

That says a great deal about their intelligence then. 60 dead in total from Covid all year, with about that every day on the roads. I know what I am more concerned about.

Reasons why Covid is better than driving in the Kingdom:

1.An encounter with Covid is less likely to leave one dead or mangled. 

2. Covid is actively monitored and contained by the government and a concerned citizenry. 

3. Fatal encounters with Covid can be avoided with minimal effort and vigilance. 

4. Vaccinations are available to protect against Covid 

5. In the foreseeable future Covid will be eliminated or rendered harmless. 

6. Covid does not cause smog or loud annoying noise at any hour of the day or night. 

7. Despite reported Covid infections in the area it is possible to cross the street with a high likelihood of reaching the other side alive. 

8. Covid has no brakes so break failures never occur. 

9. Covid is less likely to kill or maim one or more young people instantaneously. 

10. There are no reported cases of Covid leaving people paralyzed or brain dead indefinitely. 

11. <Covid does not encourage and feed corruption>. Oops, forget that one. 

 

 

 

 

Edited December 14, 2020 by RocketDog

[hioctane]

9 hours ago, FarFlungFalang said:

A typical Thai totalled percentage of 268% of respondents answered the question.This seems to be a bit misleading or is it just confusion disguised as face?

 

Isn’t it obvious that they could select more than one option.

[hioctane]

9 hours ago, darksidedog said:

That says a great deal about their intelligence then. 60 dead in total from Covid all year, with about that every day on the roads. I know what I am more concerned about.

 

They are worried about being ravaged like the West. Just because they have done a good job of containing it... doesn’t mean they should let their guard down and let the dirty farang back and infect them all!

[Odisan]

9 hours ago, FarFlungFalang said:

A typical Thai totalled percentage of 268% of respondents answered the question.This seems to be a bit misleading or is it just confusion disguised as face?

Nah, mate, you lack comprehension.

[spidermike007]

I would be infinitely more concerned about driving 100 km on any highway (except maybe the elevated toll roads), than I would be about traveling around Thailand for an entire year, without a mask or sanitizer. The chances of catching it here are up there with encountering a meteorite. 

 

The people have been whipped up into a panic. I asked my hair gal the other day, about it when she was cutting my hair, and she said she was petrified of it. I get the panic if you are in Los Angeles, or San Francisco right now. But here? With a few dozen cases over the past week or so? It is less than a pimple on the cheek of a teenager, in the grand scheme of things. Let us have some perspective on this. We are very, very, very safe here, traveling or not. 

[Truth Will Set You Free]

10 hours ago, webfact said:

 

Ask what could affect their travel plans the most 92% said Covid. This was followed by 56% the economy, 47% money, traffic 37% and opinions of family members 32%.

Those people that took this survey and said they are more concern about the Covid than the traffic accidents were all old folks that don’t go nowhere.  ????????????????????????

[cardinalblue]

JAS 21....

 

correction - I put it at 20% - 30% bad drivers on the road....and that number is enormous contributing to fatalities accidents and near misses on a constant and continuous basis...my remarks do not include motorcyclists as they are not worthy of being on the roads...have no sympathy for their numbers...

 

you are missing great golf deals in CM and Lamphung now...I have zero worries about the virus in CM and you should too...the recent infected numbers have no bearing on transmission to the general population.. it is a tiny and inconsequential number...completely over reaction by Thai gov...they know it but it projects them as conquering a non issue rather than face the upcoming northern air pollution season which they have no answers nor Will on how to problem solve...and AP is a serious and real public health issue. 

 

 

 

Edited December 14, 2020 by cardinalblue

[bbbbooboo]

I suggest this isnt true and the road fatality statistics are proof of this. Wake up Thailand

[Sydebolle]

I got jailed for sharing my opinion on the "pandemic" so I shall not make use of the so called "free speech". 

Yet, if anyone believes, that 1,277 questionnaires are relevant in a multi-level society like Thailand (Bangkok versus Nakhon Phanom or Mae Hong Son) with a total number of somewhere +/- 70 million people .....

Good luck; New Year will feature the usual competition of how many have not made it back early January due to alcohol, traffic etc., free motorway access, disappointments over already spent bonuses which will not come this year-end and heavily blown-up figures with compliments of the tourism promotion board boys congratulating themselves again by blowing their own trumpet! And that might put Covid-19 (to be possibly renamed into Covid-19to21) into better proportion than the 92% fearing factor! 

[Purdey]

It is puzzling why Thais fear Covid more than traffic accidents. One wild guess is that they have looked at the numbers in the USA ( 300,051 dead from Covid) or the UK (64,170 Covid deaths) and seen more people die than in Thai traffic accidents. Obviously, population sizes and education standards are different but they may just be looking at the total and saying no thanks.

[Pancho]

Thank you for changing the narrative.

Beautiful Thailand will be better for it.

The world will be better for it.

[drenddy]

It shows, not only the lack of education of many thais, but mostly the paranoia this Government has created...

[phetpeter]

Large pick up trucks (getting larger with every new version and large SUV's with powerful engines being driven like racing cars, with no knowledge of the center of gravity and lack of braking abilities due to the lack of weight at the rear end, is amazing to see them speeding along, using the 50 meters to brake at right lights! bumper to bumper speeding, lowered suspension, and  type of wheels placed on them. Time for the government to insist on speed limiters to be fitted to them. 

[NoshowJones]

22 hours ago, RotBenz8888 said:

Thailands response to the traffic carnage has been zero, since they're obviously not concerned enough about it. 

and it's not just the soldiers and the unelected "PM," even normal governments had the same attitude to the traffic carnage.

[NoshowJones]

22 hours ago, seajae said:

money rules, shows why nothing is done about road deaths over the years, money means more than lives going by this poll. Covid has caused not many deaths in Thailand, there are more deaths on the roads on virtually any day of the year than the total of covid deaths so far here but that doesnt bother many as they are more concerned with money and what they can get. While covid is something to worry about  road deaths are a much bigger concern, thais have a bigger chance of dying on the roads than they do by catching covid, it is obviously the financial effects that worries them more than dying

and don't forget stupidity, they actually believe that Buddah will keep them safe, they are that stupid that they can't even recognise

that their Buddah does not save an average of about 60 road deaths every day.

[NoshowJones]

20 hours ago, TheFreqFlyer said:

 

Very much so. People who only believe propaganda and do no research of their own. However, I don't think this poll of 1276 people accurately reflects the opinions of more than 69 million people.

 

One question that was probably NOT asked, in relation to Covid is the "elephant in the room" and I think IF Thais were polled about it more specifically, their answers may surprise you:

 

What exactly is it about Covid that scares you? 

 

Of course this question could be worded in many different ways. My point is that I would answer something like this: "I fear strict restrictions on daily life, such as face mask wearing, unconstitutional checkpoints, infringements on my personal liberty and possible lockdowns and such things". Many Thais might also answer in a similar way, because let's face it, who enjoys such treatment, especially when they're on holiday? 

I know for a fact many Thais have been avoiding Chiang Mai and Rai specifically because they're afraid of new restrictions being imposed at short notice while there, or possible quarantines upon returning from there (even if the government has now stated this won't happen). It's not so much they fear the "virus" on it's own. If there was no media hype, no restrictions on any kind, there would be no need for panic and no one would avoid these provinces. 

"What exactly is it about Covid that scares you?"  Getting taken into hospital and charged extortionate prices which I couldn't pay as the vast majority of my money is kept in my UK bank. 

[mtls2005]

22 hours ago, FarFlungFalang said:

About 3000 die each year from the flu

 

Total annual deaths from influenza (not COVID, yet), pneumonia and lower-respiratory infections is ~ 45,000. It's a top five, or three, cause of death here.

 

~ 80% of road deaths are from motorcycles.

 

Road deaths are not contagious, and can be avoided.

 

Equating road deaths to COVID is just plain idiotic.

 

If you want more people to die from COVID then go for it. Open the country up. Spolier alert: road deaths won't go down.

 

 

[sandyf]

23 hours ago, darksidedog said:

That says a great deal about their intelligence then. 60 dead in total from Covid all year, with about that every day on the roads. I know what I am more concerned about.

You are wrong, it has absolutely nothing to do with intelligence, it is all about personality trait among the Thai population. Not much will change if those in charge have that same trait. Change will only come from a better educated younger generation and external pressure. The government is already beginning to feel embarrassed over the world rankings in road safety.

It is nonsensical to compare covid and road safety, apples and oranges, foreigners have to learn to live with the way things are, it is not going to change a great deal anytime soon.

[Almer]

This is not surprising at all, there is little or no fear on the roads, passing on the left, wrong way on  dual road,, speed, bald tyre's, no lights nothing to fear on the roads.

[NoshowJones]

15 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

Many comments about the road carnage. And I've written before about why nothing will or can be done about it.

There are many reasons that Thais drive as they do.

1 - I have never detected any sign of common sense in a Thai, and I've been living here for over 25 years. I am not sure how you teach that, but anyway there is no movement to do so.

2 - The Thais have a Me First mentality that is deeply ingrained, and that is the last thing you want to see in a driver.

3 - The education system demands that you do not think for yourself but listen and obey, so Thais do not develop the necessary skills to actually think. That may result in my first point above.

4 - Learning to drive in a proper and responsible manner is quite difficult, and Thais do not do difficult. Thais do 'near enough', but on the roads that isn't 'good enough'. One mistake can cost lives, so being lucky enough to get it right most of the time isn't good enough either.

5 - They have absolutely no concept that the vehicle they are attempting to operate is a potential killer. No concept at all.

6 - Along with inadequate teaching of all things about how to drive properly and safely, there is no test to determine if you have reached a standard where you are not a danger to yourself and others before you take to the road.

7 - Thais do not seem able to join the dots, and realise that if, for example, they drive at 120 kms an hour five metres behind the vehicle in front, or drive at night with no rear light (or front light if they are driving on the wrong side of the road because they have no concept of the danger), then they would have no time to react if the vehicle in front brakes suddenly. Ask any Thai what their safe braking distance is and they would have no idea.

8 - There are zero police patrols to help prevent accidents by pulling aside selfish and stupid drivers. Their only presence is setting up road blocks which seems in my experience to have only one purpose - to check your tax disc is in the window and up to date.

9 - Police have absolutely no interest in enforcing the law even when they are static beside the road, watching kids three or four on a bike go by with no helmet, no license, no ability to properly control the bike they are on. And that goes also for the parents and schools who allow Thailand's future to play Russian Roulette every time they go out. The police know they get paid anyway, so why work?

10 - The government does nothing to resolve the road death/accident toll as nothing practically can be done. The problem began decades ago when Thais first began to drive in numbers. No meaningful test was introduced and enforced, and now it is far, far too late. It would mean retraining every driver (and who would do that - it would be similar to those who teach English not being able to speak the language themselves). And it would mean the drivers having to take a proper western-style test before gaining a license. And it would mean police patrols to catch those who drive as if they are playing a video game. Now, anyone can drive as they like and put themselves and others in danger as they know they have zero chance of being caught. They can drive that way with total impunity. And it would require said (non-existent) police to actually enforce the law. And not one of those things is possible in Thailand.

To finish, nothing can or will change and survival on Thai roads will continue to be a lottery. All we can do is remember the words that were used in the 70s police drama Hill Street Blues as the force were sent out on patrol - 'Let's be careful out there'.

Excellent post apart from #7. If anyone asked me my braking distance, I would not know how to answer. It depends on weather conditions, traffic conditions, road conditions etc.