Thailand Road Carnage: Targets announced for the reduction in road death toll

[SymS]

Is the new, higher 120 kph speed limit part of the initiative?

[AlQaholic]

It's the motorcycles on the backstreets, 80% of all accidents are motorcycles. Focus on motorcycles and voila! problem solved.

 

Yes I agree with other posters that Thais cannot drive properly and cannot read or understand road signs, don't understand how road lanes work and never looks at the instrument cluster, and drive home from a day on the beach with beer or rum in a alcoholic induced coma (see a slow driver on the highway? probably drunk:)).

 

Yes, we see som horrific accidents now and then on the highways by the occasional bus, rot lotto and some pickup truck with the back filled with 30 people flying all over the place, but these are like those horrific plane crashes, doesn't really decrease the safety record of flying; still one of the safest modes of transport.

It is the motorcyclists that die and injure in droves all over the country.

[robertson468]

19 hours ago, HaoleBoy said:

Just start collecting data to know where/what to target and stop with all the hot air.

1)  Count all deaths, not just at the scene, but any death due to an accident.

 

All deaths to people without a license

All deaths to underage drivers 

All deaths due to people involve not having lights on or wrong lights (no red lights in rear)

All deaths due to people driving the wrong way 

All deaths due to small bikes (less than 400 cc) and all big bikes

All deaths due to no helmets

All deaths with > 2 people on motorbike

All deaths involving u-turns

Just a start but add more categories ... 

Good idea, it would at least identify where the main problem is.  But, Plod still needs to be out on the road, much, much more and there needs to be a whole swath of cameras, both at traffic lights to catch those who run the lights at red and on the motorways as speed traps.  Then the Courts (not the police) need to start handing out fairly heft fines and confiscating vehicles that are driven dangerously.  There also needs to be a concerted effort to check driving licences and Schools could be brought in to assist by checking if their pupils have licences.  Sadly the Government is more interested in buying submarines and fast jets rather than protecting their own citizens.

[ChrisKC]

All mouth and trousers!

 

Please, please tell us what you are going to DO!

[Gandtee]

'It was a coming together of minds'! An oxymoron if ever there was one. The only way to reduce accidents is to get the police out there to do the job they are paid for and enforce the law. Meanwhile let's have another meeting, for which we are paid to attend, to contribute anything meaningful or not. I'm going back to bed!.????

[Edwin Cameron]

That really is obscene.! come on Thailand stop jerking around and do something constructive.

[ChrisKC]

A suggestion - first things first:

 

Move these people from their inactive posts to ACTIVE ones

[Jaspermiller922]

Don't put the speed limits up idiots can't handle or ignore the limit as it is while texting and weaving through traffic 

[Mr Meeseeks]

1 hour ago, Bangkok Barry said:

Bearing in mind that there are surely those who didn't see my previous post on this, I'll repeat it. Those who did see it, skip to the next post.
 

There are many reasons 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'.
 

A quality and accurate post. 

[metisdead]

A post containing content that was copy and pasted from some site without a supporting link has been removed as per the following:

 

14) You will not post any copyrighted material except as fair use laws apply (as in the case of news articles). Please only post a link, the headline and the first three sentences.
 

 

A post with a trolling image has been removed. 

[Blue Muton]

I'm not usually in favour of men hitting women but when I read the story in our local news about the guy who slapped his wife around the head after their son badly injured himself by rear-ending a car on the "big bike" that she'd bought for her son a few days earlier my first thought was that he should have whacked her a week earlier and a lot harder. I haven't changed my mind. The lad in question was just fourteen.

 

A lot of work to be done on changing the mindset of these morons and the really sad thing is that they haven't bothered starting.

[bbbbooboo]

Hmmm... I seem to remember the last time targets were made in Thailand to reduce the deaths on the roads, road death numbers actually increased. This endless talk and blather achieves nothing

[Happyman567]

Another meeting. Blah Blah Were the cops asleep at the meeting because they are a big part of the problem. The Thais know they are safe because the cops are invisible and they do whatever they like

[NoshowJones]

20 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

First a proper education in driving.. not only 5 hrs watching movies, but 30 hrs active driving with an instructor.

Secondly enforcement of the traffic law.. traffic police AND normal police have to check everytime driverslicense, alcohol, black smoke, lights in front and back and brakes.. and of course helmets.. Not ok confiscate the car till the problems are solved. ( buy new lamps, new filter, helmet  and or be sober.) Speeding confiscate the car and stupid <deleted> revoke their license and even jailtime. Fine at least 10% of the value of the car   (showroomprice)..  See what will happen.....you don't need to wait till 2027. Start tomorrow!! 

You cannot educate stupid, and that applies to the majority of Thai people.

[yvonnelau]

Why is it that Thailand do not understand that education will solve alot of problems? Plastic, drunk driving, debt slavery .... the list goes on.

[J Town]

Sometimes I get the feeling I'm stuck in a very bad episode of a Twilight Zone/Groundhog Day crossbreed.

[mr_lob]

My proposal: More of those roadside tents with volunteer cops and poo-yai baan wannabees with walkie talkies...all playing on their phones.

Best road safety initiative since the seat belt.

[ecoscape]

22 hours ago, HaoleBoy said:

Just start collecting data to know where/what to target and stop with all the hot air.

1)  Count all deaths, not just at the scene, but any death due to an accident.

 

All deaths to people without a license

All deaths to underage drivers 

All deaths due to people involve not having lights on or wrong lights (no red lights in rear)

All deaths due to people driving the wrong way 

All deaths due to small bikes (less than 400 cc) and all big bikes

All deaths due to no helmets

All deaths with > 2 people on motorbike

All deaths involving u-turns

Just a start but add more categories ... 

 

[Caspersfriend]

Consult the Russkies - from the prolific YouTube vids they know a thing or two about road 'accidents' - it's not an 'accident' when you drink a bottle of Wodka before driving - even if it was filtered five times!

[Quietus]

The majority of deaths are motorcyclists. Mostly young.

 

Teenage racers, children riding motorcycles - even to school. Thai society has abandoned responsibility for the young.

Can’t even say lock up the parents, as they have abdicated their responsibilities and put their children’s lives in danger - there aren’t enough prisons.

 

Thai people are simply bad parents.

[ChrisKC]

They tell us when reporting traffic deaths that most occur on straight roads. These same straight roads are the ones that will enjoy an increase from 90kmh to 120kmh speed limit soon. For those on the roads including a few on this forum already going at this speed, raising the official limit to 120 simply gives license to travel up to 150 and more. Not to mention most of these drivers are using only the outer lane.

It's an important point, I think, that travelling continuously at high speed in the outer lane will make "U" Turning (in both directions) a greater hazard than it currently is!

 

I predict more accidents and more deaths, not less - this year, next year or the year after.

 

I really hope I am wrong!

[metisdead]

An off topic post about Covid deaths in the USA has been removed. 

[spidermike007]

I have set a personal target, to earn three million baht a month, and live to be 95 years old, without a single ailment, or injury. Does that mean it will happen?

 

Will these guys who set these targets, ever put anything behind the effort to reduce road carnage? Discussing a problem can lead to solutions, if and when you have talent, intelligence, vision, and leadership, to back you up. None of those qualities exist, within this administration. 

 

They will not do a thing. Why? They do not care about the people one iota. Not the common people. Not the average pleb. No way. Never have cared, and may never care in the future. It is all about protecting the elite, the super wealthy, those that are connected, and those in power. The rest of the population? They do not matter. The ex-pat community does not matter. And the police will not get involved unless an accident has already occurred. There is no prevention. None. The idea of getting the police more involved, is an interesting one, and it would be an effective one. But, the issue is money. They are grossly underpaid, and until the government steps up, and spends the trillion baht on updating the police equipment, and paying each cop a living wage, it is not going to happen. Until then, they will just work the franchise. And the so called highway patrol never patrol the highways in search of reckless drivers. Never. 

The only way to survive here on the road, is to be patient, have eyes in the back of your head, drive with caution, and always, and I mean always watch out of the other guy. Chances are, he does not have much driving skill, nor patience, nor reason, nor common sense. You cannot be too careful on the road here. Especially considering that the toy police offer no traffic safety, nor enforcement of the law.

 

When I was growing up, we took drivers education courses. They showed us horrendous films, or semi trucks plowing into cars, and literally obliterating everything in their path. They also showed us graphic images of head on collisions. 120mph impacts. Even as a young kid, it made quite an impression. It was horrific, and it was hard to get those images out of your head afterwards. But, it left a lasting impression, and when I started driving, I understood it was serious business, and that it was a very dangerous thing to do.

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?

[Peterphuket]

22 hours ago, HaoleBoy said:

Just start collecting data to know where/what to target and stop with all the hot air.

1)  Count all deaths, not just at the scene, but any death due to an accident.

 

All deaths to people without a license

All deaths to underage drivers 

All deaths due to people involve not having lights on or wrong lights (no red lights in rear)

All deaths due to people driving the wrong way 

All deaths due to small bikes (less than 400 cc) and all big bikes

All deaths due to no helmets

All deaths with > 2 people on motorbike

All deaths involving u-turns

Just a start but add more categories ... 

Ha, ha, ha,

You mean that those with a driver's license can drive?

Ha, ha, ha.

Only 2 things will help in this country,

 

1.) A solid driver training.

2.) Real traffic control. 24/7/365!

 

And yes, I nearly forget, but maybe the most important: change of mentality, but that have to start on primary school....you are not the center of the universe.

To participate in traffic is to participate.

[Peterphuket]

In my country, more than 50 years ago we got already a driver license training of more than half a year.

Now on this days there are about 800 road fatalities/ year on a population of 17,000,000.

When you multiplied by 4 = 68 million people, then there are no more than 3200 fatalities.

[Hugh Merriman]

They could start by fineing the wacko Grab, Pandy and outher motorcycle delivery services .  They are maniacs. They have no concern for the other person safty on the road let alone their owne.   It would not be hard to spot them.   

[ttrd]

23 hours ago, darksidedog said:

There never are and never have been.

If the cops, whose duty it is to uphold the law could get out there and actually stop every speeding driver and red light runner they might start to get somewhere. All the meaningless chat in the world will do absolutely zero, but it is all I have ever seen in my many years here. Sadly I suspect the 2022 and 2027 numbers will remain fairly in line with what we see now.

 

RE - If the cops, whose duty it is to uphold the law could get out there and actually stop every speeding driver and red light runner they might start to get somewhere.

 

* Not that easy especially during a time when the there are no tourists to stop since the locals seems to be more or less excempted from the trafic law ...

[Ramdas]

It doesn’t surprise me a bit hearing that there are more deaths caused by reckless driving than due to COVID they could easily win a Guinness award just based on the deaths caused by road accidents alone.
As everyone in here has said, these meetings are utterly useless if they don’t ever implement any laws or regulations with regards to driving , waste of time and space really  ????????‍♂️ 
Legally, they could make a huge profit out of it,  if only the brownies would put their phones down and do their job for a change but first they need to turn out at work ????????‍♂️  it’s very dangerous out there no matter how alert and vigilant you have to stay ( even as pedestrian ) No to mention scary, especially when they jump the red light or  you find them coming at you whilst driving against the traffic, its a dangerous habit they’ve made out of it.

The is the end result when discipline is clearly lacking in every respect in this country whether being on time or on the roads..

[sandyf]

23 hours ago, colinneil said:

Well theres a surprise, no concrete measures reported, there never are, its all wind and p++s.

Same as every time before lots of useless talk, but no action.

That is not true, there has been a great deal of change in the last 20 years.

Coincidentally I was on my way to the hospital this morning and we passed a strange coloured big bus, the side was marked Road Safety Management with the caption "Saving Lives". Somebody somewhere is thinking about it.

On that same stretch of road there are 2 experimental U turns that have been on the go for several years. The idea was that the turning traffic could turn behind a barrier into the other carriageway without the need to stop. Unfortunately like many good ideas the biggest obstacle can be the general public. The Thai desire to be first took over and vehicles were going into U turn 2 abreast which meant neither could exit safely and everything came to a standstill as previous.

It is still a work in progress and they keep making changes to try and prevent 2 vehicles turning  at the same time without restricting the size of vehicle. 

There is no dispute the police could be more proactive but the real problem stems from a personality trait/ culture that is not going to change in my  lifetime.

[robert888d]

Increasing the speed limit is a step in the wrong direction