Thailand road carnage: Nation's latest "at-the-scene" fatalities - it's getting even worse, three more a day

[Thunglom]

14 minutes ago, Benmart said:

Alcohol, corruption and the lack of mobile traffic patrols are main factors contributing  to roadway deaths

there's a lot more to it than that.

[sawadee1947]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

slowing down for bends is particularly dangerous

Really?

????

[ChrisKC]

11 minutes ago, KhunLA said:

Not underage driving in PA, USA ... did you read this part:

"Save your silly comments"

 

Legal drinking age back then was actually 21, now it's 18.  I was getting drunk and driving at 15, if need to know.  Common where I grew at ????  after working a 12 hour shift ... and yea, that was illegal also.  But, want to play, got to pay, means you got to work.

That is why I preceded my remark about under age, with, "Here's a silly comment". You silly billy!

[hotchilli]

6 hours ago, webfact said:

Lack of helmet wearing and drunk driving are cited as two major causes. 

 

Lack of proper police enforcement, poor driver and rider training and political lip service to the issue are cited as contributing factors.

This has been the case for the last god knows how many years.. nothing changes, therefore the accidents continue.

What do they expect?

[Thunglom]

5 hours ago, actonion said:

Police enforcement ? i want to know how the  Police can enforce any road traffic violation  when they dont know  the rules of the Highway code themselves

My Thai brother inlaw  is a Policeman  while spending time with him and a  couple of his collegues, i questioned them,  in a light hearted way,  on questions   in the Highway code, not even one  of them could answer any questions  put to them,  but they thought long and hard   before admitting they didnt know the answers 

You make a good point - the RTP are not sufficiently trained in Road safety or traffic law enforcement.

However changing this requires more than just training existing officers.

They need to have equipment, roads that are clearly marked and a legal system that can deal with motoring offences and follow up fines etc.

The changes to the RTP are so fundamental as to be constitutional in their nature.

 

[Thunglom]

7 minutes ago, ChrisKC said:

It is NOT an anecdote. These are accurate figures, either I saw them as stated or I am guessing/fabricating them. This is a general forum, I am not creating statistics for the Transport Dept. or for any official use. And it WAS the quietest time of day. I know the road well! If it helps you, while I didn't count those who WERE helmeted I guessed it was about 50%. My exercise had to take account of riding my bike at the same time and nothing to do with other vehicles - only the helmet issue which was easy to do! Sorry, maybe there were 209 or 203.

Sorry but you don't seem to understand the nature of anecdotal evidence.

" This is a general forum, I am not creating statistics for the Transport Dept. or for any official use"

" I didn't count those who WERE helmeted I guessed it"

QED

Edited January 21, 2022 by Thunglom

[ChrisKC]

1 minute ago, Thunglom said:

Sorry but you don't seem to understand the nature of anecdotal evidence.

So anybody that witnesses anything, it is only anecdotal evidence and somehow needs to be thrown out! OK, you win!

[overherebc]

1 hour ago, Jack West Jr said:

Why are so many of you bickering and arguing instead of addressing the issue ? How old are you, five ? 

Another article about something we have all known a long time . As a cyclist I avoid major roads if possible . 

I would avoid all roads if I could.

[ThailandGuy]

Ask them to show you their drivers license!  Many do not even have one !

[Percy P]

5 hours ago, 7491 said:

if I may, in my view ……

 

”Poor driver and rider training is the major cause.

 

Lack of helmet wearing, drunk driving, lack of proper police enforcement and political lip service to the issue are contributing factors
 

Theres a way to make every rider wear a helmet

[sungod]

51 minutes ago, ChrisKC said:

Only yesterday, I had decided I would count the number of motorcycles with Riders and passengers without helmets.

 

It was the quietest time of the day and I was out for two hours on my bicycle

 

I counted 206 that included 3's on a bike, babes in arms. Not to mention, other observed offences and of course unobserved offences as in some having no licence and so it goes on - and on!

 

Multiply this by a whole day, a month on just one road 0f 20kms, then multiply again by all the towns and cities in Thailand and one arrives at a number so large that one's "gasted" couldn't be more flabbered.

 

I find it distressing to know some of these people will have left home alive but won't return!

Bet they were all wearing masks though.....

[jacko45k]

1 minute ago, sungod said:

Bet they were all wearing masks though.....

Yes they seem to..... bless them for being considerate.

[Ralf001]

1 hour ago, ChrisKC said:

 

I find it distressing to know some of these people will have left home alive but won't return!

Why ?

[thailand49]

6 hours ago, actonion said:

Police enforcement ? i want to know how the  Police can enforce any road traffic violation  when they dont know  the rules of the Highway code themselves

My Thai brother inlaw  is a Policeman  while spending time with him and a  couple of his collegues, i questioned them,  in a light hearted way,  on questions   in the Highway code, not even one  of them could answer any questions  put to them,  but they thought long and hard   before admitting they didnt know the answers 

So true I spoke to my police renter a while back he didn't know that under and overtaking 200-300 M from an intersection was illegal.

 

[roger101]

At a set of Traffic Lights on Beach Rad yesterday. I stopped but 3 cars and 3 motorbikes didn't. As this is close to the police station I would have thought it would be easy money for them without too much work.

Also when I ride around Pattaya I am surprized by the number of motorbikes that have a faulty back light. I don't ride around looking for them but tend to stand out when they brake and the brake light comes on but disappears as soon as they stop braking. Another easy to spot offense that the RTP ignore.

[Muzzique]

7 hours ago, Dmaxdan said:

But remember that many Thais regularly get the pedals muddled up so slowing down for anything isn't that straightforward.

Pedals? I thought they only used one..

[dlclark97]

7 hours ago, Dmaxdan said:

But remember that many Thais regularly get the pedals muddled up so slowing down for anything isn't that straightforward.

Also remember there are many who confuse the horn button for the brake pedal! 

[meshborg]

You cannot educate people who already know better than you.This is Thai culture.Rather wear a face mask on a motorbike than a helmet.As Venom would say "Let there be Carnage."

[RocketDog]

7 hours ago, ezzra said:

Way too many fatalities for 66 million people, and wait when they legalize the growing of marijuana and drivers will partake in using it now that it is legal...

You may be surprised to learn that as marijuana legalization began in the United States law enforcement was savagely opposed to it, citing the same fears you have.

In state after state various police forces ran multiple tests using volunteer drivers with clinically tested THC and alcohol blood levels hoping to demonstrate similar driver failures in both groups as drivers negotiated courses on closed courses under officer supervision. Needless to say, the drunks performed poorly indeed while believing they did well.

Guess what happened with the stoners. I bet you can at this point, so I'll leave it to you to search for the results if you're willing to find the truth.

 

For years before that the government sought to further discredit the drug with scientific proof of the Reefer Madness myth that it had itself been proselytizing for decades.

 

Grants were funded and tests were run in closely controlled experiments.

The result? Well, the stoned test subjects were the first to admit that their reaction time had clearly suffered as well as their coordination. Unfortunately for the grant funders the test results failed to concur. Results showed that reaction times did not degrade but that generally drivers were moving their vehicles more slowly and carefully, in an attempt to compensate for their self-determined impairment.

 

We would all like to find solid confirmation of our own beliefs, convinced that it is all intuitively obvious to any impartial observer, but it doesn't always work that way.

 

Frankly I'm amazed that so many people cling to false beliefs long after they have been disproven. I suppose I shouldn't be after witnessing the last presidential election in America and its aftermath.

 

I certainly don't expect Thai drivers to become better if weed is legalized, but based on historical evidence there is no reason to believe they will get worse. I sincerely hope that they don't get worse. Also remember that any Thai national wishing to possess weed certainly can very easily.

 

That said, this is after all, Amazing Thailand so I could be wrong.

[spidermike007]

What is being done to reduce the numbers? When is the last time you saw a "highway patrol" car actually pulling someone over for reckless driving? 

 

One of the top reasons people do as they please on the highways, are the toy police force. Nobody, and I mean nobody takes these guys seriously. There is absolutely nothing in the way of a deterrent here, and both the local governments, the central government (weak Little P.) and the police do not take traffic safety seriously. Not even one iota. The safety of the public means less than zero to the small men in charge here. Nothing. They show that on a daily basis.

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.

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?
 

[Pabs]

USA have about 35,000 road deaths per year.... For a developed country,,,,

[RedRoadRunner]

7 hours ago, ezzra said:

Way too many fatalities for 66 million people, and wait when they legalize the growing of marijuana and drivers will partake in using it now that it is legal...

Any other problems in your head ?

Edited January 21, 2022 by RedRoadRunner

[Tropposurfer]

These numbers are truly astronomical and so shocking. I'm glad I don't just shrug my shoulders at these terrible figures.

No way I will ever ride in a small car here. A bl.ody big SUV, keep well clear of trucks and those crazy ute drivers, watch the oncoming traffic like a hawk too and head on a swivel is the order of every day. 

The crazy thing is that drunk driving is not just confined to late-night stuff it happens mid morning here. As to the totally overloaded utes that ply the nations roads! 

 

[Trvlr55]

2 hours ago, ChrisKC said:

Only yesterday, I had decided I would count the number of motorcycles with Riders and passengers without helmets.

 

It was the quietest time of the day and I was out for two hours on my bicycle

 

I counted 206 that included 3's on a bike, babes in arms. Not to mention, other observed offences and of course unobserved offences as in some having no licence and so it goes on - and on!

 

Multiply this by a whole day, a month on just one road 0f 20kms, then multiply again by all the towns and cities in Thailand and one arrives at a number so large that one's "gasted" couldn't be more flabbered.

 

I find it distressing to know some of these people will have left home alive but won't return!

Only a few days ago, I observed a young couple on a motorcycle, and each holding a baby. Happily driving down the road, no helmet in sight. Appears they left the pet dog at home for some unknown reason!  Was talking to a bar manager the next day, and mentioned this; she said not really uncommon to see 4 adults actually; 5 now that's rare, but it happens.
Had read somewhere that even police have been seen driving down crowded sidewalks, but assumed that was a one off or just rumor. Then today, see what I assumed to be a RTP higher ranked officer, with all his metals, and looked like he'd been partaking in way way too many buffets, hop on his cycle and charge down the middle of a crowded sidewalk; possibly because getting on the road was the wrong direction, but it was quite a ways to the side street the direction he was headed. "just saving time and gas after-all.
In the last month have only observed 2 separate motorcycle accidents; all going the same direction, crash into each other, get up, dust off, and away they went. Crash & Go's maybe, sorry don't know all the local lingo yet??
Nah, nothing wrong with driving here, just don't believe it. All seems quite normal.

[CygnusX1]

1 hour ago, RocketDog said:

Well, the stoned test subjects were the first to admit that their reaction time had clearly suffered as well as their coordination. Unfortunately for the grant funders the test results failed to concur. Results showed that reaction times did not degrade but that generally drivers were moving their vehicles more slowly and carefully, in an attempt to compensate for their self-determined impairment.

A drunk driver goes straight through a stop sign without slowing down.

A stoned driver stops at the sign and waits for it to turn green.

I know, old joke…

[spidermike007]

I have been riding bikes for 49 years. Without any serious accidents. A few minor ones over the years. Riding a bike here is very dangerous. If not the highest, one of the highest fatality rates in the world. And an accident here can be very costly, to your person. Just ask yourself- do I have enough problems already, without a broken skull, or smashed head, or face injury, or lost eye? I have three friends who have been in motorbike accidents on Samui within the last several 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. The third one is a close friend, who was hit by a sidecar, and nearly lost his leg. 11 operations later, he can walk, but with a limp, and the leg caused him constant problems, many years later. 

 

[gejohesch]

8 hours ago, actonion said:

Police enforcement ? i want to know how the  Police can enforce any road traffic violation  when they dont know  the rules of the Highway code themselves

My Thai brother inlaw  is a Policeman  while spending time with him and a  couple of his collegues, i questioned them,  in a light hearted way,  on questions   in the Highway code, not even one  of them could answer any questions  put to them,  but they thought long and hard   before admitting they didnt know the answers 

why is it that I'm not surprised?

[Mywayboy]

9 hours ago, Dmaxdan said:

But remember that many Thais regularly get the pedals muddled up so slowing down for anything isn't that straightforward.

Dont know their A!@% from their Elbow.

Not much grey matter between the Ears sadly. 

[sitanonchai]

Been hearing this for more then 25 years now, next topic.

[roo860]

36 minutes ago, spidermike007 said:

I have been riding bikes for 49 years. Without any serious accidents. A few minor ones over the years. Riding a bike here is very dangerous. If not the highest, one of the highest fatality rates in the world. And an accident here can be very costly, to your person. Just ask yourself- do I have enough problems already, without a broken skull, or smashed head, or face injury, or lost eye? I have three friends who have been in motorbike accidents on Samui within the last several 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. The third one is a close friend, who was hit by a sidecar, and nearly lost his leg. 11 operations later, he can walk, but with a limp, and the leg caused him constant problems, many years later. 

 

Sorry, i have no sympathy with anyone who has a head injury that could have been avoided if a helmet was worn.