Thailand road carnage: Losses are 500 billion baht a year

[webfact]

File photo

 

The carnage on Thailand's roads is not just a tragedy for the loss of life.

 

The financial loss is massive too, reported Thailand's business media. 

 

They put the total loss to the country at a staggering 500 billion baht a year. 

 

The death toll on the roads dropped last year but that can be put down to the slowdown from the pandemic. 

 

This year is already looking like being worse than 2019 and confirming Thailand's place as the worst in ASEAN and one of the worst per capita on earth, reported Thansettakij.

 

Some 80% of the deaths are motorcyclists.

 

A worst case scenario put deaths from road accidents at 18,606 by 2027 and a best case scenario 15,399.

 

But these appear to be deaths at the scene with the reality after deaths on the way to and hospitals are added being much worse.

 

Leading Thai officials have already admitted it stands around 24,000 to 26,000.

 

If nothing is done the figure could top 30,000 by the end of the decade. 

 

Calls have been made for urgent action to reduce the carnage by 41% by 2027 and 50% by the end of the decade.

 

At present one person dies every 23 minutes. 

 

Stats show that 39% of victims are the main breadwinners in families. 

 

Their death has a direct impact on an average of 2.43 others creating a damage to the economy that is only projected to get worse and worse. 

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2021-04-12

 

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[ParkerN]

Just now, webfact said:

They put the total loss to the country at a staggering 500 billion baht a year.

 

The price of incompetence in the police force and the government both. Read it and weep. They wanted to keep the population stupid and uneducated. They succeeded (with help from Uncle Sam) - and this is the price. Rather than worship the man, he should be in prison. He already has a ticket to the ninth circle.

Edited April 12, 2021 by ParkerN

[ParkerN]

Just now, webfact said:

Their death has a direct impact on an average of 2.43 others creating a damage to the economy that is only projected to get worse and worse. 

 

While those who are to blame gorge themselves at their trough without a care in the world save for self-serving cares.

[seajae]

until such time they make the police actually police the roads and enforce the laws it will continue, getting proper police cars instead of the stupid pickups they have now would be a great start, also getting proper motor bikes instead of the toy bikes they have now would allow them to use them on open roads. Making road useres actually do proper training and licencing enforcement wouldnt go astray either but a lot of the problem is the mentallity of many road users, they simply dont care about other road users as long as they can do as they please plus the greater majority have no idea of the actual road regulations and if they do they simply ignore them

[Ramdas]

Why don’t they do something about it instead of complaining about the deaths ????????‍♂️
As it’s been mentioned many time over get the police to do their job instead of sleeping or on their phone in the police kiosk !

Educate thai motorbikes with hefty fines and discipline them to respect the Red ????lights, no to drive against the traffic, put the helmets on and to look around for oncoming traffic and while at it have a brain transplant too, since even if they make an attempt to train the thai famously known as  reckless drivers, there will be a whole lot more death than what the virus is doing  !!! It will take centuries with the way things stand at the present but hey ! That’s what you get as result of an insular and backward lawless culture  ????????‍♂️

[Andrew65]

51 minutes ago, ParkerN said:

 

The price of incompetence in the police force and the government both. Read it and weep. They wanted to keep the population stupid and uneducated. They succeeded (with help from Uncle Sam) - and this is the price. Rather than worship the man, he should be in prison. He already has a ticket to the ninth circle.

"But these appear to be deaths at the scene with the reality after deaths on the way to and hospitals are added being much worse".

Some say that this is not true, whilst this article says that it is.

"Some 80% of the deaths are motorcyclists".

 

One thing being is that there are so many motorbikes on the road in Thailand, in comparison, in the UK, there are hardly any. Plus, a motorcyclist is probably much more likely to die in an accident.

[ParkerN]

Just now, Ramdas said:

Why don’t they do something about it instead of complaining about the deaths ????????‍♂️
As it’s been mentioned many time over get the police to do their job instead of sleeping or on their phone in the police kiosk !

Educate thai motorbikes with hefty fines and discipline them to respect the Red ????lights, no to drive against the traffic, put the helmets on and to look around for oncoming traffic and while at it have a brain transplant too, since even if they make an attempt to train the thai famously known as  reckless drivers, there will be a whole lot more death than what the virus is doing  !!! It will take centuries with the way things stand at the present but hey ! That’s what you get as result of an insular and backward lawless culture  ????????‍♂️

 

Just so, and one of the ways in which being  “free to do as you please“ manifests, is in the road toll; the price of a few lunatics being able to "do as they please” is untold bloodshed and mayhem on the roads. Welcome to the Third World.

[ikke1959]

In 16 years that I live in Thailand I hear the same song.. and still nobody does anything about this tragedy. RTP too lazy and corrupt , penalties too soft, and government who doesn't care only they scream every year that something has to change.. but next week when everything is normal again nobody cares anymore. Get rid of these stupid checkpoints near the roads with people sitting doing nothing than watching there phones.. cost lots of money and are useless.. Educate  the RTP and stop people and check drivers license, alcohol, condition of the car, loading weight and height, safety belt use , and speeding cameras a few hundred meters before the checkpoint... and fine with 10% of the value of the new price of the car they driving. No money leave your car/motorcycle behind till you can pay. See what will happen

[ParkerN]

Just now, Andrew65 said:

One thing being is that there are so many motorbikes on the road in Thailand, in comparison, in the UK, there are hardly any. Plus, a motorcyclist is probably much more likely to die in an accident.

 

 Agreed.  Especially if there is no penalty applied for riding without a helmet; riding if you are 15 years old or younger; riding through a red light; riding on the wrong side of the road; riding without lights; riding without mirrors et cetera et cetera.  The bottom line: the government and the police are jointly lists, solely responsible for the death toll while they wring their hands in mock sorrow, then climb into the chauffeur-driven limousine for the arduous 30 minute drive home to count their takings for the day.

 

And they really do wonder why they are still in the Third World (Mr Prayuth's  delusions of grandeur notwithstanding).

 

[ParkerN]

Just now, ikke1959 said:

In 16 years that I live in Thailand I hear the same song.. and still nobody does anything about this tragedy. RTP too lazy and corrupt , penalties too soft, and government who doesn't care only they scream every year that something has to change.. but next week when everything is normal again nobody cares anymore. Get rid of these stupid checkpoints near the roads with people sitting doing nothing than watching there phones.. cost lots of money and are useless.. Educate  the RTP and stop people and check drivers license, alcohol, condition of the car, loading weight and height, safety belt use , and speeding cameras a few hundred meters before the checkpoint... and fine with 10% of the value of the new price of the car they driving. No money leave your car/motorcycle behind till you can pay. See what will happen

 

 Good and worthwhile statements all, and if they had any sense at all, they would be followed, but they don't so they won't.  The one weak link in your  otherwise cogent argument, is that all of those courses of action  require the RTP  a to being prepared to go and learn from other people.  For a Thai, that is the ultimate humiliation, because it implies they don't know everything, and they believe they do,  so it won't happen.  and that's a real pity.

[PatOngo]

It happens year in, year out, they are very slow learners!

[trainman34014]

The point everyone is missing is that.....THEY DON'T WANT IT TO CHANGE !    Having lived here for close to 15 years and having watched very little change overall when it comes to inherent law breaking and lack of Law Enforcement one comes to the conclusion that the Thai people just don't care about anything other than what they are individually doing on any given day.   I have had many discussions with Thai's about Road Safety matters and a good deal of other matters but almost without exception they say 'as long as my family is not involved i don't care much about anything' .   They live in their own Bubbles with their own ways of dealing with things; like riding unprotected on old Motorbikes with two Kids, no Licence, no Insurance, no Tax, jumping every light they can and riding against the Traffic whenever it suits them etc etc.   They are happy to continue in this way and actually resist change; so on they will go to ever increasing mayhem, they just don't evaluate things in the same way we do and have no wish to change.....ever !

[Andrew65]

3 minutes ago, trainman34014 said:

The point everyone is missing is that.....THEY DON'T WANT IT TO CHANGE !    Having lived here for close to 15 years and having watched very little change overall when it comes to inherent law breaking and lack of Law Enforcement one comes to the conclusion that the Thai people just don't care about anything other than what they are individually doing on any given day.   I have had many discussions with Thai's about Road Safety matters and a good deal of other matters but almost without exception they say 'as long as my family is not involved i don't care much about anything' .   They live in their own Bubbles with their own ways of dealing with things; like riding unprotected on old Motorbikes with two Kids, no Licence, no Insurance, no Tax, jumping every light they can and riding against the Traffic whenever it suits them etc etc.   They are happy to continue in this way and actually resist change; so on they will go to ever increasing mayhem, they just don't evaluate things in the same way we do and have no wish to change.....ever !

"...they just don't evaluate things in the same way we do".

 

They have a different 'mindset'.

[Pilotman]

2 hours ago, ParkerN said:

 

While those who are to blame gorge themselves at their trough without a care in the world save for self-serving cares.

That seems to be a description of all politicians, worldwide. Never met an honest one yet and I doubt that I ever will.  

[Andrew65]

19 minutes ago, Pilotman said:

That seems to be a description of all politicians, worldwide. Never met an honest one yet and I doubt that I ever will.  

"They haven't just got their snouts in the trough, they've got both trotters in there too!"????

[bradiston]

For me, the worst trait is speeding. Even in built up areas (I'm in Pattaya) everybody fights to get past each other, and for no good reason that I can see. 9/10 after they have passed you, you'll come across them parked up roadside, picking their spots in the mirror. What happened to jay yen? Just slow down! What's the hurry?

[mark131v]

The problem you have is the Government and most people in authority are inherently lazy and most are very, very dim. They like all their ilk take the path of least resistance

 

The main issue is that it's easy to do nothing, in order to change effort, time, money and a lot of forethought need to be expended and the reward versus deficit is too far down the line to be attractive and most importantly it's only really the serf's that suffer the consequences...

 

Still plenty of slop's in that trough, oink, oink!!!

[ParkerN]

Just now, Pilotman said:

That seems to be a description of all politicians, worldwide. Never met an honest one yet and I doubt that I ever will.  

 

Indeed. the basic nature of people is largely the same everywhere, though the means of expression varies according to culture and location.

[Jimbo2014]

Im starting to wonder if its intentional to keep the Auto Industry in business.  Otherwise what would be the reason for allowing such horrific carnage to continue?

[pixelaoffy]

3 minutes ago, Jimbo2014 said:

Im starting to wonder if its intentional to keep the Auto Industry in business.  Otherwise what would be the reason for allowing such horrific carnage to continue?

Of course profit before human life .. and that's not just companies..Thais never believe it will be them who will die on the roads 

[GarryP]

3 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

In 16 years that I live in Thailand I hear the same song.. and still nobody does anything about this tragedy. RTP too lazy and corrupt , penalties too soft, and government who doesn't care only they scream every year that something has to change.. but next week when everything is normal again nobody cares anymore. Get rid of these stupid checkpoints near the roads with people sitting doing nothing than watching there phones.. cost lots of money and are useless.. Educate  the RTP and stop people and check drivers license, alcohol, condition of the car, loading weight and height, safety belt use , and speeding cameras a few hundred meters before the checkpoint... and fine with 10% of the value of the new price of the car they driving. No money leave your car/motorcycle behind till you can pay. See what will happen

They'd need some bloody big car parks. 

Edited April 12, 2021 by GarryP

[tomazbodner]

There's a reason Thailand produces so many cars...

[RocketDog]

3 hours ago, ParkerN said:

The bottom line: the government and the police are jointly lists, solely responsible for the death toll while they wring their hands in mock sorrow, then climb into the chauffeur-driven limousine for the arduous 30 minute drive home to count their takings for the day.

And the folks driving the cars and bikes? What role do they play besides being corpses? Do they bear any responsibility in their own death? 

 

Here's my point. Such threads on forum posts like this are invariably bursting with advice about more police presence, fines, etc. 

 

I maintain that these all miss the point entirely. 

 

ROAD CARNAGE WILL CONTINUE AS LONG AS THAI PEOPLE ARE INDIVIDUALLY AND JOINTLY WILLING TO CONTINUE KILLING AND DYING. 

 

Proper and safe operation of any vehicle on the road begins with the responsibility of the driver AND  their passengers.

Any measure beyond that is just a symptom of the real problem, not a solution. 

 

[Jimbo2014]

1 hour ago, pixelaoffy said:

Of course profit before human life .. and that's not just companies..Thais never believe it will be them who will die on the roads 

 

As long as you have enough lucky charms and tam boon you never need fear - even at 200km fast and furious.

[ParkerN]

Just now, RocketDog said:

 

 

Taking the points you make individually:

 

And the folks driving the cars and bikes? What role do they play besides being corpses? Do they bear any responsibility in their own death? 

 

 Yes, they do however Thai society has been moulded to be unintelligent and uneducated for many years.  That being the case, the folks driving the cars and bikes know no better.  It is surely the government's job to ensure that they do know better, and that they abide by the rules of the road.  Which they do not do at the moment.

 

Here's my point. Such threads on forum posts like this are invariably bursting with advice about more police presence, fines, etc. 

 

Point taken, the objective with more police presence, more fines etc.  is not to reduce the toll road toll.  That's what they say it's for but it's been proven not to work; therefore, continuing to do it is proof of insanity. Now I do not think that the government is collectively insane.  What I do think is that the government is collectively venal, which includes the RTP, naturally enough.  Both are interested only in paying the rent and not in  doing anything useful for Thais as a whole.

 

I maintain that these all miss the point entirely.

 

I agree wholeheartedly. I have about made the comment before that a cat cannot be a dog, and this cat has tried many, many times.  Unsuccessfully.

 

ROAD CARNAGE WILL CONTINUE AS LONG AS THAI PEOPLE ARE INDIVIDUALLY AND JOINTLY WILLING TO CONTINUE KILLING AND DYING.

 

 Yes, it will.  However, one must accept that Thais have been hoodwinked into believing that 1 of their birthrights (perhaps the only birthright they have) is that they are free.  They believe this with a passion, and experience has taught them that the law has no leverage over them.

 

Proper and safe operation of any vehicle on the road begins with the responsibility of the driver AND  their passengers.

 

I agree, wholeheartedly, however the natural state of a Thai mind indicates it will never happen to them, and if it does that they will come back as a sheep or goat, something superior to the rice farmers that most of them are at the moment.

 

Any measure beyond that is just a symptom of the real problem, not a solution. 

 

 I agree, but that does nothing to advance the argument the only thing that will likely work is to change the education system such that this nonsense about being free disappears, and the civic duty of being law-abiding is taught into these thick heads whereas today, it is not.

Edited April 12, 2021 by ParkerN

[KannikaP]

5 hours ago, ParkerN said:

 

The edit and quote functions are not working properly. In addition to all the other things.

WRONG FORUM.

 

They are OK for me. 

 

And here's the EDIT.

 

Now, what other things are not working for you?   LOL

Edited April 12, 2021 by KannikaP

[kevc]

Have you noticed every car, truck and bike commercial have them racing around and skidding to a stop. No wonder there's so many accidents if this is how they portray acceptable driving.

Edited April 12, 2021 by metisdead
Bold font removed.

[Rimmer]

A couple of off topic posts have been removed, topic under discussion here is:

 

Thailand road carnage: Losses are 500 billion baht a year

 

Please post in Forum Support desk if you have a problem with some of the forum functions, thank you.

[RocketDog]

11 minutes ago, ParkerN said:

Yes, they do however Thai society has been moulded to be unintelligent and uneducated for many years.  That being the case, the folks driving the cars and bikes know no better. 

I want to agree with you but I cannot.

I think even uneducated folks recognize blood, mangled bodies, crushed cars, funeral pyres, and hospital intensive care wards. They definitely recognize such when the victims are their mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, children, cousins, friends, and themselves.

What medium or method could possibly educate them more persuasively than that? Even dumb animals recognize death when they see and smell it. 

 

The education argument falls flat in my view. 

I don't pretend to understand why they accept such violent destruction of their own families but it's clear that whatever twisted group logic it is cannot be changed by external forces including law enforcement and education.

 

The realization that change is needed can only come from and by each and every member of society. Whatever change occurs must come deep from the soul of the Thai people themselves. 

 

I long ago determined to stop replying to posts such as this thread because it is utterly pointless. How can anything that anybody says on this forum possibly bring about such a fundamental change to a culture not our own?

Hopefully I will have the sense not to bump my gums again. It doesn't even feel good to vent any more. It just makes me sad. 

[ParkerN]

Just now, RocketDog said:

I want to agree with you but I cannot.

I think even uneducated folks recognize blood, mangled bodies, crushed cars, funeral pyres, and hospital intensive care wards. They definitely recognize such when the victims are their mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, children, cousins, friends, and themselves.

What medium or method could possibly educate them more persuasively than that? Even dumb animals recognize death when they see and smell it. 

 

The education argument falls flat in my view. 

I don't pretend to understand why they accept such violent destruction of their own families but it's clear that whatever twisted group logic it is cannot be changed by external forces including law enforcement and education.

 

The realization that change is needed can only come from and by each and every member of society. Whatever change occurs must come deep from the soul of the Thai people themselves. 

 

I long ago determined to stop replying to posts such as this thread because it is utterly pointless. How can anything that anybody says on this forum possibly bring about such a fundamental change to a culture not our own?

Hopefully I will have the sense not to bump my gums again. It doesn't even feel good to vent any more. It just makes me sad. 

Excellent. If you know better then I bow to your opinion as being righteously held. I don't agree with it and believe that you will learn differently in time, but that is not my problem.

 

Have a great day.