I'm too afraid to stop my car at Zebra crossings

[davidst01]

The obvious reason is that I fear being rear ended. 

 

If there's a traffic light at the zebra crossing (like they have on beach road pattaya) then yes its safe to stop. But other than that I believe its too much risk to stop. The (Thai) driver behind me might drive up the back of me

 

Once I was in the N.East and pulled over to the left side of the road to take a photo of a rice field. Next thing I know 2 x 15 yr old girls on a moped rear ended me. I had to accept half the responsibility at the station. Parents tried the money grab on me but once I started showing my ugly/ angry face at them this idea stopped. The point of the story is that if one stops on a thai road, eg zebra crossing, there's significant risk- until such time as they educate ALL thai drivers to the new rule. 

 

 

[kokesaat]

Some years ago, in the middle of downtown Udon, an older woman was trying to cross a busy 4-lane street, just before a roundabout.  She was in a crosswalk.  I was in the righthand lane (of the two lanes).  I stopped and waved her on......as she started to walk past my truck, I quickly found out that the people in the lefthand lane weren't going to stop for her.   I cringe at the thought that my stopping could have resulted in her injury/death.

I realized the error in my judgement......Thais don't stop for people in crosswalks.  Pure and simple

[JoePai]

9 minutes ago, kokesaat said:

Some years ago, in the middle of downtown Udon, an older woman was trying to cross a busy 4-lane street, just before a roundabout.  She was in a crosswalk.  I was in the righthand lane (of the two lanes).  I stopped and waved her on......as she started to walk past my truck, I quickly found out that the people in the lefthand lane weren't going to stop for her.   I cringe at the thought that my stopping could have resulted in her injury/death.

I realized the error in my judgement......Thais don't stop for people in crosswalks.  Pure and simple

There is a pecking order and pedestrians, cyclists, scooter/bike riders are at the bottom 

[bbko]

Easy fix, come to a slow rolling stop and no one will slam into the back of you, also have a front & rear recoding dash cam.

[KhunLA]

41 minutes ago, kokesaat said:

I realized the error in my judgement......Thais don't stop for people in crosswalks.  Pure and simple

I haven't noticed a whole bunch of non Thais stopping either, whether in Thailand, or USA.

[connda]

43 minutes ago, kokesaat said:

Some years ago, in the middle of downtown Udon, an older woman was trying to cross a busy 4-lane street, just before a roundabout.  She was in a crosswalk.  I was in the righthand lane (of the two lanes).  I stopped and waved her on......as she started to walk past my truck, I quickly found out that the people in the lefthand lane weren't going to stop for her.   I cringe at the thought that my stopping could have resulted in her injury/death.

I realized the error in my judgement......Thais don't stop for people in crosswalks.  Pure and simple

Yeah, I stopped for a couple of farang gals at a crosswalk in Chiang Mai along the moat last week.  They started across and almost got hit by a car in the left lane as they started across.  The car just blew through the crosswalk as they were stepping onto the road barely missing the gals.  I'm like - OMG!  <palm-plant>
We try to Do The Right Thing but doing so actually puts lives in danger.  How do you succeed in that situation.
Yeah - I understand your dilemma. It sucks!
By following the law as well as being courteous we put ourselves as well at the pedestrians in danger.  It shouldn't be that way.  But it is!  Hence - The Most Dangerous Roads In The World!

[scubascuba3]

Even at traffic lights if they are turning red i look behind to see what the vehicle behind is doing, cement mixers tend to keep going.

 

The other risk at zebras is you stop, people start walking and other vehicles keep going, not nice

[Dmaxdan]

Surely this is about evaluating each and every situation individually. For the most part, the human brain is pretty good at that...

 

If a pedestrian is already walking on the crossing then you have to stop, or you risk running them over. If someone then rear ends you then so be it. Just remember that by stopping you have probably saved the pedestrian's life!

 

If a pedestrian is standing and waiting at a crossing as you approach and you are being tailgated by another vehicle then it is advisable to proceed but with extreme caution.

 

If a pedestrian is standing and waiting at a crossing and there is no one behind you then you can consider stopping. It is then up to the pedestrian to check if other vehicles are stopping. Remember that they have an obligation for their own safety as well as you do.

 

The bottom line is that when driving here in Thailand you have to be aware what is going on around you at all times and check your mirrors regularly!

 

 

[seajae]

I used to question my wife not stopping at crossings till one time we did stop and the pedestrian  was cleaned up by the bike rider that swerved out from behind us and ran straight into her at speed, never questioned her after that but I do stop when they are crossing as it is ingrained into me from all the years I have been driving. Unfortunately thai riders/drivers ignore the road rules and are a law unto themselves, too arrogant/ignorant to obey the law because it means they have to slow down or stop for someone else

[Daffy D]

Many of these incidents could be avoided by looking in your mirror to assess the traffic around you before making any maneuver.

 

Like many others I tend not to stop for pedestrians to cross the road for the reasons mentioned. 

 

The times I have stopped I keep an eye on my mirrors to see what's coming behind, and on several occasions have waved my arm out the window to stop a motorbike from zooming past and hitting the people crossing.

  

[seedy]

I think I was about 5 years old when I learned to cross the road.

No zebra crossings then.

[wprime]

If you are rear-ended by 15 yr old girls, don't accept responsibility but agree to pay for immediate medical bills. You're probably financially much better off than them and you will win a lot of favour with your local police.

[Led Lolly Yellow Lolly]

7 hours ago, connda said:

We try to Do The Right Thing but doing so actually puts lives in danger.  How do you succeed in that situation.

It's quite simple, you continue doing the right thing. Defensive driving is one thing but doing the 'wrong' thing just because everyone else is is just dumb. You can't be responsible for everyone else on the road. Anyone that says breaking common sense rules helps you to fit in, is a Thailand noob.

 

Full disclosure, I've been rear ended just twice in 20 years. On both occasions the rear-ender (fnar) panicked I was going to prosecute.

 

8 hours ago, davidst01 said:

Once I was in the N.East and pulled over to the left side of the road to take a photo of a rice field. Next thing I know 2 x 15 yr old girls on a moped rear ended me. I had to accept half the responsibility at the station.

I don't believe this, not even in Thailand would a simple case of being rear-ended put you in the wrong. You either had 'sucker' painted on your forehead or you're not telling us the whole story.

 

 

 

[wprime]

6 minutes ago, Led Lolly Yellow Lolly said:

I don't believe this, not even in Thailand would a simple case of being rear-ended put you in the wrong. You either had 'sucker' painted on your forehead or you're not telling us the whole story.

While I agree what he's saying would be completely untrue if it happened in BKK, I've seen enough such comments to think there's some truth to this in rural areas.

 

[Will B Good]

Trying to cross soi 3 on a zebra crossing near Bumrungrad today......eventually step out and forced the traffic to stop....not very clever ....... but effective.

[Led Lolly Yellow Lolly]

8 minutes ago, wprime said:

I've seen enough such comments

There, right there, comments on a forum. . .

[Will B Good]

:

[itsari]

1 hour ago, seedy said:

I think I was about 5 years old when I learned to cross the road.

No zebra crossings then.

Looking out for a horse i imagine at  that time

[it is what it is]

 

chicken and egg, catch 22; agree with the OP, this is a reason several thai friends have given me for not stopping to let people cross the road or letting other drivers pull out of junctions, the fear of other drivers not paying attention and being hit from behind.

 

 

[NanLaew]

19 hours ago, connda said:

19 hours ago, kokesaat said:

Some years ago, in the middle of downtown Udon, an older woman was trying to cross a busy 4-lane street, just before a roundabout.  She was in a crosswalk.  I was in the righthand lane (of the two lanes).  I stopped and waved her on......as she started to walk past my truck, I quickly found out that the people in the lefthand lane weren't going to stop for her.   I cringe at the thought that my stopping could have resulted in her injury/death.

I realized the error in my judgement......Thais don't stop for people in crosswalks.  Pure and simple

Yeah, I stopped for a couple of farang gals at a crosswalk in Chiang Mai along the moat last week.  They started across and almost got hit by a car in the left lane as they started across.  The car just blew through the crosswalk as they were stepping onto the road barely missing the gals.  I'm like - OMG!  <palm-plant>
We try to Do The Right Thing but doing so actually puts lives in danger.  How do you succeed in that situation.
Yeah - I understand your dilemma. It sucks!
By following the law as well as being courteous we put ourselves as well at the pedestrians in danger.  It shouldn't be that way.  But it is!  Hence - The Most Dangerous Roads In The World!

I remember those old driving advisories on black and white television in the UK and one of them was, "Look Behind".

 

Before slowing down, look behind.

 

Before turning right, look behind.

 

before turning left, look behind.

 

Before stopping, look behind.

 

You get my drift?

[actonion]

With my wife driving our Car , I   shouted  RED LIGHT, she obviously hadnt seen the light    she braked hard, we stopped, & were rear ended  by a Thai on a PCX  bike, who fell off her bike,  and full of apologies when i  pointed  at the Red light,        the bigger problem being  with the light still Red  all other traffic was passing through the light