Campaign needed to educate Thai drivers about stopping at red traffic lights

[Purdey]

I would suggest ASEAN NOW members take photos or videos of policemen driving and riding through red traffic lights but of course that would be useless as they are allowed to do that apparently.

Edited February 7, 2022 by Purdey
Typo

[kennw]

6 hours ago, Geoffggi said:

What can you expect when previously it was reported by the authorities that going the wrong way along a one-way street or going through a red light was a minor offence - You reap what you sow 

very common offence for motor bikes, need more cameras able to capture rear number plates of bikes, and a campaign against those riders who tuck the plates back under the seat out of sight.

[ChipButty]

I had it yesterday I stopped at the red light some farang banging on his horn from behind obviously wanting me to go through the red light turning left, I didnt move also recently as you turn left the police have been waiting there 

[SAFETY FIRST]

3 minutes ago, ChipButty said:

I had it yesterday I stopped at the red light some farang banging on his horn from behind obviously wanting me to go through the red light turning left, I didnt move also recently as you turn left the police have been waiting there 

Be very careful on the roads here. 

Lots of crackpots, idiots on our roads. Once they start sounding their horn anything is possible, aggression, hostility too much these days. 

 

I always sit well back (under nearby a tree or building shade) from the red lights, wait in the distance for lights to change. 

 

 

[digger70]

Educate Thai Drivers , Now that's a Lost cause If they Don't police Every Traffic light and Book the offenders .

No Warnings book them first time ,second time impound  vehicle for a Month ,

that should help a little bit

[brianthainess]

They need educating in ALL aspects of driving. Just why is the Thai driving test taken on a test course where the speed of driving is less than 20 klm,? I mean why can't they implement a proper test on roads, roundabouts, hill starts etc. Just what possible reason could there be ??? maybe there are no testers capable of driving themselves. It makes no sense to keep having so many deaths on the roads, they can't even drive on a straight road in broad daylight sober.

[Burma Bill]

10 hours ago, webfact said:

or crossing red traffic lights,

Personally, I wonder how many drivers in Thailand cannot distinguish red because they are colour blind??

Yes, I know the Thai Driving Test (as I experienced) includes checks for such a defect but how many drivers out there do not have a driving licence and have never taken the test (I used to know 2!!)

 

"Most colour blind people are able to see things as clearly as other people but they are unable to fully 'see' red, green or blue light. There are different types of colour blindness and there are extremely rare cases where people are unable to see any colour at all" (Google)

 

[Toany]

This a pedestrian crossing that gives a green light to the cars and pedestrians at the same time.  In Thailand, a green light on a pedestrian crossing does not means it is safe to cross.

Unbelievable!

Edited February 7, 2022 by Toany

[Golden Triangle]

All the above suggestions, backed up with an extensive TV campaign covering all aspects of road craft, it would be a start.

[connda]

#Sarc-On
They could flood the TV and social media with Public Service Messages showing Thais proper driving technique.  The problem though?  Nobody from the Top to the Bottom understands what 'proper driving technique' actually involves.  You can't teach courtesy. Any public service messages regarding driving technique would devolve into messages urging Thai teens not to have underage sex and to respect their elders and not to play Halo while driving their motorcycles.
#Sarc-Off
But-
If they did do it, it could be very effective.
Target motorcyclists who pull into traffic without looking.  Teach them HOW TO enter traffic safely.
Target drivers who will cut across a highway at a 90 degree angle to oncoming traffic and slowly accelerate after reaching the far right passing lane and instead teach them HOW TO use the "acceleration lane" on the far left to come up to speed and merge.
Target drivers to teach them HOW TO properly merge.
By the way - as far as stop-lights go.  There is not enough time between a light turning yellow to red to actually stop.  Here in Lamphun they have put new lights in at a major interchange.  The lights blink Green for about 10 seconds before turning yellow and then red.  So - Thailand needs to upgrade their stop light infrastructure. Right now stopping when the light turns yellow gets you rear-ended.  When a light turns yellow the first thing I do is shoot a glance at my rear-view mirror.  I shouldn't have to do that.
So - upgrade the stop light infrastructure and...Target drivers to teach them HOW TO properly stop at a stop light.
The list is endless, but a focused public service message campaign could change Thai driving habits.
#Sarc-On
But-
TIT.  It will never happen.  It's a Western Solution.  All Thais know - Foreigner Bad.  Foreigner ideas bad too.

Edited February 7, 2022 by connda

[prakhonchai nick]

2 hours ago, scorecard said:

Perhaps they should make a radical change and start compulsory lesson hours starting at junior high school level.

 

Structured lessons conducted by selected appropriate police officers who can get the attention of the kids (all with well constructed diagrams in compulsory handouts) , and the initial lessons focus on 'the rules of the road' (traffic laws). There's rgular tests and each kid has a progressive profile of test scores. 

 

Ultimately must pass a consolidated exam before they can get a permit to start driving lesssons which must be conducted by licensed driving instructors.

 

Pie in the sky? Probably yes.

Let the kids be indoctrinated with driving rules and laws at school instead of indoctrinated  in religion. They will learn soon enough about the afterlife if they fail to understand how to drive.

[connda]

4 minutes ago, Toany said:

This a pedestrian crossing that gives a green light to the cars and a green light to the cars and pedestrians at the same time.  In Thailand, a green light on a pedestrian crossing does not means it is safe to cross.

Unbelievable!

Exactly that almost got me killed the first week I was in Thailand.  My Western mind interpreted that as meaning - "It's safe to cross."  A motorcycle moving at speed missed me by inches.  What those lights do is convey a false sense of security to Westerners who cross.
Nowadays when I cross my head stays turned in the direction of oncoming traffic until I'm safely across the road.

[connda]

38 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

They need educating in ALL aspects of driving. Just why is the Thai driving test taken on a test course where the speed of driving is less than 20 klm,? I mean why can't they implement a proper test on roads, roundabouts, hill starts etc. Just what possible reason could there be ??? maybe there are no testers capable of driving themselves. It makes no sense to keep having so many deaths on the roads, they can't even drive on a straight road in broad daylight sober.

Yep.  They need a Western model where each driving candidate is put in a car with a driving tester and made to show their skills in actual traffic.  Thais don't have driving skills.  Why?  They are not forced to learn them and then exhibit them on a mandatory driving skills test.

[brucegoniners]

That needs a "campaign"? LOL

[JesseHumphry]

Educate them? They call a red light "dark green" if you pass through the intersection late. You've got a massive cultural upheaval to do.

[rudi49jr]

Not just about stopping at red traffic light, they need to learn ALL the traffic rules. And it would help if the RTP started enforcing those traffic rules as well.

[tomyami]

Police on second road in pattaya where very active I got done for breaking a red light on my PCX was afraid to stop because some traffic behind me was not slowing down.

Thai's routinely break lights no enforcement on them.

They where doing only foreigners (saw it from room balcony) for crossing the newly painted lines while stopped.

[scorecard]

55 minutes ago, brucegoniners said:

That needs a "campaign"? LOL

Resulting in 'but we've already completed that campaign, so not needed'. 

[RayOday]

This response is typical director mentality. Design a program, issue a directive, send it out and expect things to change. Wrong!

Here is what they should try in my humble opinion. Paint the Zebras, place every police general at each for a minimum of 2 weeks. No assistants, no junior officiers, no delegation of paperwork. There are certainly tens of multiples of police generals. Thailand's police staffing is more bloated than a beer drinking Farang's gut but I must add "the Thai police have  good heart". Once the bosses see what's going on and sweat it out, then back to their command to inspect the metrics their underlings have set up during their extended field trip. The metrics would be produced weekly and to the public. They would display at a minimum: # of zebras under their respective management, # of accidents, accident frequency (to compare management zones for sharing best practices), # of warnings issued, # of violations issued. This would continue and weekly safety data would be posted much like the Covid-19 dashboard. The Bangkok government would assign a senior public health and transport official to a safety board held responsible to defined goals. This cannot be owned by one branch of government. I could get a lot more specific but why waste my time. It won't happen. Talk until the next death. They have the numbers to prove it.

"All things proceed in their circle and thus the empire is complete".

Edited February 7, 2022 by RayOday

[scorecard]

28 minutes ago, JesseHumphry said:

Educate them? They call a red light "dark green" if you pass through the intersection late. You've got a massive cultural upheaval to do.

Even worse, we have an old very loud, very demanding aunty (witch) in our family circle. She knows everything and is insistant she's always right and it's always an answer/comment that will/would benefit her.

 

A few times she's been caught going through red lights (with other family members in the car, who have repeated the conversations with the cops).

 

'You went through a red light, it was already red for 2 seconds'.

 

'But you don't know the law officer. Employees of the government (or their close relations) have an extra 2 seconds to go through red lights'.

 

'That's not corect and it's not possible because it would be very confusing and cause accidents and quite dangerous'.

 

One time a snr. officer stopped to see what the commotion was all about and she abused the snr because he didn't know the law (her inerpretation of the law).

 

She was taken to the nearby police station where she strongly abused the snr again and other officers.

 

Snr fined her 5,000Baht for her bad attitude and loud abuse, had to be paid in cash before she could leave the station. 

 

My son checked and it seems the snr does have the authority to do that.

 

My son asked the witches son 'did she get a receipt'?

 

'No, snr refused to give her a receipt'.

 

 

[Dont confuse me]

Surely this was done at the driving test stage? ???? 

 

 

 

 

 

[apophyss]

Every weeks, thais news look like a first april,

but its not a joke.

 

 

(And they dont understand why farang dont "respect" them...)

[pokerface1]

7 hours ago, Nicholas Paul KNIGHT said:

Simple, fine 5000 baht for each offence payable on the spot or vehicle impounded until paid ,  and if you get three fines, then automatic disqualification for 12 months, BUT that will need enforcement....bit difficult with the RTP rarely exiting their Police Stations 

The problem is that only 10% of people pay their traffic fines. So until they get serious about collecting the money fines don’t deter law breakers. 

[keithkarmann]

12 hours ago, smedly said:

how many years have there been traffic lights in Thailand and suddenly they need to be told to stop on red

 

is this a joke 

"I AM NUMBER 1" and until you get rid of this attitude and the saving face attitude things will never change.

[TigerandDog]

8 hours ago, jaiyen said:

Position police at every zebra crossing and prosecute all drivers that dont stop.  Oh, that is too easy !

Not a case of being too easy, more a case of police having to actually do their jobs.

[bluemoon58]

8 hours ago, jaiyen said:

Position police at every zebra crossing and prosecute all drivers that dont stop.  Oh, that is too easy !

Might as well. They do sod all else! 

[BadSpottedDog]

????‍♀️ Ummm .... shouldn't Thai drivers know about red traffic lights BEFORE they are "drivers"?

[ericdiam]

ZERO campaign needed. Just increase fines 5 to 10 times minimum and drivers will change.

Fines of few hundred bath when driving cars of few hundred thousand and many over million bath.

Only way to really change drivers attitude.

In Europe had also lots of problems years ago, till they started increasing again and again more.

Now much much better and if you get a fine, you will say to yourself that good one time but never again, I learned it!!!

[NoshowJones]

Only one sentence is needed for this.

 

"Educating Thai drivers about red lights would only be one big waste of time".

[NoshowJones]

9 hours ago, bluemoon58 said:

Yet more buffoonery! Thai drivers should be getting educated on ALL aspects of driving, not just red lights. In my opinion, what Air Vice Marshal Ittaporn Kanacharoen is really saying is, Thais have very little common sense if they don't know how to use a red light. Either that or they just don't give a <deleted>...!!!

 

Thai drivers getting educated?? You cannot educate stupid, which is about 80%

of Thai drivers.