Helmut Police

[gk10002000]

I have seen the motorcycle helmut police on Central Pattaya Road just about every day this week. They were even ticketing Thais. Just down a bit and opposite Carre 4, heading towards the Beach. Soi annuotai or something like that? I know that is not spelled right.

At least they seem to be doing the ticketing on the spot. Last year my buddy got stopped on second road and we had to follow the cop over to the little police booth near TOPS. No big issue, just took some extra time.

[tw25rw]

They have Germans policing Thai roads now?

[basjke]

They should do a better job if they stayed at the traffic lights and catch the potential murders that jump red light all day and night.

[Sarge]

They have Germans policing Thai roads now?

prolly Patts is twinned with Hamburg, they just exchanging police forces. Imagine two BIBs on 50cc scooter policing German autobahn

[tattoodrob]

They should do a better job if they stayed at the traffic lights and catch the potential murders that jump red light all day and night.

they do stay there sometimes but aint bothered about red light jumpers ,i think its easier for them to catch helmet or helmut dodgers

[tropo]

They were even ticketing Thais.

This comments suggest that you believe they normally only ticket Farang. This is not true.

I ride bike, and I can tell you with certainty that all over Pattaya far more Thais are ticketed than Farang....they don't discriminate. This is a good sign which impresses me about the Pattaya police. I've only been pulled over twice in 3 years and both times I was sneaking up a one-way street and deserved the ticket.

What I'd really like to see, which of course will never happen, is for police to stop adults from carrying young children and babies on their motorcycles. Don't you love seeing an adult holding a baby in one hand while controlling the bike with the free hand. Thousands of times each day you'll see a helmeted mother and father with one or two unhelmeted little kids sandwiched inbetween them...and the cops just let them ride on by. A lot of Farang are doing the same with their little children too. At the very least you'd think they would insist upon the children wearing helmets too and limit the passengers to 2 adults and 1 child.

And what's with all the unhelmeted sikhs?

Red light jumping is par for the course in Pattaya. Hardly anyone stops for red lights late at night. What about the morons who speed through intersections 5 - 10 seconds after the light has turned red? Infuriating. Even worse, the idiots who block the intersections after the lights have turned red, blocking all opposing green-light traffic.

You really need to keep your cool when driving/riding in Pattaya.

Edited November 14, 2008 by tropo

[Westerner]

They have Germans policing Thai roads now?

[goldfish]

And what's with all the unhelmeted sikhs?

Because of the inability to fit a helmet over a turban, sikhs are excempt from the need to wear a helmet in the uk. Presume the law must be the same for thailand

[PeaceBlondie]

I have never spent more than a few nights in Pattaya, but Chiang Mai is much like Pattaya, as tropo suggests. Twenty times as many Thais as farang get ticketed for no helmet, even pillion riders. It happens every day in large groups, at several locations, and it is a good thing. I agree with tropo about riders with babies.

[Kerryd]

And what's with all the unhelmeted sikhs?

Because of the inability to fit a helmet over a turban, sikhs are excempt from the need to wear a helmet in the uk. Presume the law must be the same for thailand

Same in Canada. They argued in court is was religious discrimination to force them to remove their turbans and wear a helmet. Funny though, I know a few, and see a lot more, that don't wear a turban at all (unless it's convenient for them I guess, like when riding a bike).

As for ticketing, I agree with Tropo. Far more Thais get ticketed for not wearing helmets than farangs. I'd like to see better control at intersections as well, but I guess from their perspective, it's easier to pull over a motocy and give out a ticket, than to have to chase down a car that has just blasted through the intersection.

It's a start though. It wasn't that long ago that they weren't even enforcing the helmet law. Maybe in a couple of years they'll start enforcing some of the other laws as well.

[farangpattaya]

They were even ticketing Thais.

This comments suggest that you believe they normally only ticket Farang. This is not true.

What I'd really like to see, which of course will never happen, is for police to stop adults from carrying young children and babies on their motorcycles. Don't you love seeing an adult holding a baby in one hand while controlling the bike with the free hand. Thousands of times each day you'll see a helmeted mother and father with one or two unhelmeted little kids sandwiched inbetween them...and the cops just let them ride on by. A lot of Farang are doing the same with their little children too. At the very least you'd think they would insist upon the children wearing helmets too and limit the passengers to 2 adults and 1 child.

A motorbike is designed for 2 people: the driver and the passenger. Both must wear a helmet. 3rd and more passengers are not allowed on a bike. Since more than 2 people is not allowed, there is no need to let the extra passengers wear a helmet. There is no policemen who will stop a 'family bike' because it is the only mean of transport they can affort and since officially the extra passengers are not on the bike............

[bottleymike]

On a related subject, The police have for some months set up a road check on the Sukhumvit on the side heading to Sattahip, between the central klang turn and the south pattaya turn. It seems to operate two or three times a week, and the police pull all nationalities.they pull offenders into the police yard sited there, but as I have not been pulled (yet) I dont know if its an ear bending for offenders, a quick fine, or a paperchase delayed fine.

[splodger]

And what's with all the unhelmeted sikhs?

Because of the inability to fit a helmet over a turban, sikhs are excempt from the need to wear a helmet in the uk. Presume the law must be the same for thailand

Same in Canada. They argued in court is was religious discrimination to force them to remove their turbans and wear a helmet. Funny though, I know a few, and see a lot more, that don't wear a turban at all (unless it's convenient for them I guess, like when riding a bike).

As for ticketing, I agree with Tropo. Far more Thais get ticketed for not wearing helmets than farangs. I'd like to see better control at intersections as well, but I guess from their perspective, it's easier to pull over a motocy and give out a ticket, than to have to chase down a car that has just blasted through the intersection.

It's a start though. It wasn't that long ago that they weren't even enforcing the helmet law. Maybe in a couple of years they'll start enforcing some of the other laws as well.

i think,but ot sure which scandanavian country,they have to wear"special" helmet turban's,makes sense to me.

[tropo]

And what's with all the unhelmeted sikhs?

Because of the inability to fit a helmet over a turban, sikhs are excempt from the need to wear a helmet in the uk. Presume the law must be the same for thailand

Thank you for stating the obvious. I'm well aware why the ride around unhelmeted, but I think it's bs. Why shouldn't they take them off?

[tropo]

They were even ticketing Thais.

This comments suggest that you believe they normally only ticket Farang. This is not true.

What I'd really like to see, which of course will never happen, is for police to stop adults from carrying young children and babies on their motorcycles. Don't you love seeing an adult holding a baby in one hand while controlling the bike with the free hand. Thousands of times each day you'll see a helmeted mother and father with one or two unhelmeted little kids sandwiched inbetween them...and the cops just let them ride on by. A lot of Farang are doing the same with their little children too. At the very least you'd think they would insist upon the children wearing helmets too and limit the passengers to 2 adults and 1 child.

A motorbike is designed for 2 people: the driver and the passenger. Both must wear a helmet. 3rd and more passengers are not allowed on a bike. Since more than 2 people is not allowed, there is no need to let the extra passengers wear a helmet. There is no policemen who will stop a 'family bike' because it is the only mean of transport they can affort and since officially the extra passengers are not on the bike............

I've well aware that bikes are designed for 2 people.

Any family that can afford a motorbike will not have a problem coming up with other forms of transport. When I was a kid we biked to school or took buses. If they want to get strict on bike safety they must start looking at the danger the children are in. This is a far more serious concern than unhelmeted adults. It makes me cringe every time I see it and I've been living in Asia most of the last 10 years. In the Philippines bikes will be modified to carry 6 or more passengers by use of a foot rail.

At the very least, if they insist on letting 2 or 3 kids ride along with the adults, they should wear helmets too. Right now the only reason any Thais wear helmets is for the purpose of not getting a ticket. They don't understand safety issues.

Edited November 15, 2008 by tropo

[tattoodrob]

And what's with all the unhelmeted sikhs?

Because of the inability to fit a helmet over a turban, sikhs are excempt from the need to wear a helmet in the uk. Presume the law must be the same for thailand

Same in Canada. They argued in court is was religious discrimination to force them to remove their turbans and wear a helmet. Funny though, I know a few, and see a lot more, that don't wear a turban at all (unless it's convenient for them I guess, like when riding a bike).

As for ticketing, I agree with Tropo. Far more Thais get ticketed for not wearing helmets than farangs. I'd like to see better control at intersections as well, but I guess from their perspective, it's easier to pull over a motocy and give out a ticket, than to have to chase down a car that has just blasted through the intersection.

It's a start though. It wasn't that long ago that they weren't even enforcing the helmet law. Maybe in a couple of years they'll start enforcing some of the other laws as well.

i think id rather wear a helmet than put a turban on instead

in pattaya maybe police ok about it as their turban is probably safer than the plastic cheap useless crap most wear........maybe il open a turban shop and sell to farangs who dont like wearing helmets,can u imagine it ...hundreds of european tourists all driving around town in turbans,those indians would be well wound up

i agree that in numbers more thais probably get tickets,but i have been singled out at intersections even when lots of thais have no helmet and even seen thais drive past a waiting copper with no problem but then when i go past i get waved down and ticketed..........thats my complaint and think thats a valid one .anyway i wear one now just to save myself hassle

i agree about kids on bikes,not safe especially with no helmet etc but then i understand why they ride around with whole family on bike as cant afford other options in most cases. baht bus are only cheap when on a standard route and they would be more dangerous on bicycles everywhere.

red light jumpers and then blocking intersection is another big wind up and also very dangerous as lots of people really jump the lights at high speed,im surprised i aint seen real bad accident..seen a few very nr misses

thais on or in vehicles tend to push there luck beyond belief and im not sure how or when this will ever change,they just think its just bad luck when in an accident and dont realise most are caused by stupidity and not adhering to the laws or learning road sense to help themselves.

[jdinasia]

The police set up checkpoints regularly all over.

They don't single out farang and are quite nice .... so .....?????

[tattoodrob]

The police set up checkpoints regularly all over.

They don't single out farang and are quite nice .... so .....?????

duh!!!!! if you read my post you would see that they do single out farang(unless im lying just for the sake of it) .......not at those large regular official checkpoints with 20 cops on sukhumvit rd,3rd road,pattaya tai etc ......but happens on a regular basis at intersections and other places around town where theres only 1 or 2 cops working. if they aint seen a farang for a while then might start on the thais......but i think as less farangs about then thats why they now make it look like there playing fair,come high season(open hunting season) it will change against farang more .sorry to be negative but i call it as i see it and not from hearsay

[jdinasia]

The police set up checkpoints regularly all over.

They don't single out farang and are quite nice .... so .....?????

duh!!!!! if you read my post you would see that they do single out farang(unless im lying just for the sake of it) .......not at those large regular official checkpoints with 20 cops on sukhumvit rd,3rd road,pattaya tai etc ......but happens on a regular basis at intersections and other places around town where theres only 1 or 2 cops working. if they aint seen a farang for a while then might start on the thais......but i think as less farangs about then thats why they now make it look like there playing fair,come high season(open hunting season) it will change against farang more .sorry to be negative but i call it as i see it and not from hearsay

duh!!!!!!

not my experience (or apparently that of many other farang that live or ride there)

[Sarge]

The police set up checkpoints regularly all over.

They don't single out farang and are quite nice .... so .....?????

duh!!!!! if you read my post you would see that they do single out farang(unless im lying just for the sake of it) .......not at those large regular official checkpoints with 20 cops on sukhumvit rd,3rd road,pattaya tai etc ......but happens on a regular basis at intersections and other places around town where theres only 1 or 2 cops working. if they aint seen a farang for a while then might start on the thais......but i think as less farangs about then thats why they now make it look like there playing fair,come high season(open hunting season) it will change against farang more .sorry to be negative but i call it as i see it and not from hearsay

duh!!!!!!

not my experience (or apparently that of many other farang that live or ride there)

do you actually drive in Thailand? and if you do, what you drive and where you drive?

Yes they're all polite (Thai are polite people unless you seriously annoy them), but some take delight in stopping drivers (foreign or Thai) whom they believe they have the slightest excuse to fleece money. One things that annoys me is how they demand your driver licence, get hold of it and then walk away, returning a minute later still clutching your licence and not letting it go until you paid them tea money.

Q. when a traffic/motorway policeman stops you, ask you questions and then he start stroking your stomach, what does that mean?

Edited November 15, 2008 by Sarge

[tropo]

The police set up checkpoints regularly all over.

They don't single out farang and are quite nice .... so .....?????

duh!!!!! if you read my post you would see that they do single out farang(unless im lying just for the sake of it) .......not at those large regular official checkpoints with 20 cops on sukhumvit rd,3rd road,pattaya tai etc ......but happens on a regular basis at intersections and other places around town where theres only 1 or 2 cops working. if they aint seen a farang for a while then might start on the thais......but i think as less farangs about then thats why they now make it look like there playing fair,come high season(open hunting season) it will change against farang more .sorry to be negative but i call it as i see it and not from hearsay

duh!!!!!!

not my experience (or apparently that of many other farang that live or ride there)

Not my experience either. I've never noticed Farang being singled out. If there are any cops targeting Farang for some quick cash, they usually pull over a similar number of Thais so it doesn't look too obvious.

I'd even go one stop futher and say that honest cops would rather ticket Thais than deal with the language barrier and/or aggression from Farang who feel they are above the law.

Edited November 15, 2008 by tropo

[PeaceBlondie]

Pardon me if this insults any Pattaya residents, but I am not going to say leave the Kingdom if you do not like it there. I suggest you go to Thailand, the real Thailand, where police seem to give tickets to far more Thais than they give to farang. Just a thought...

[barryofthailand]

Pardon me if this insults any Pattaya residents, but I am not going to say leave the Kingdom if you do not like it there. I suggest you go to Thailand, the real Thailand, where police seem to give tickets to far more Thais than they give to farang. Just a thought...

Your absolutely correct. I live in Korat, and the police here give lots of tickets to Thais. They even have checkpoints early in the morning, checking the school kids to make sure they have drivers license.

Barry

[jdinasia]

Sarge ...... ugh ... where to start...

OK ... Yes I ride a motorcycle in Thailand .. every day for the last 5 years. Yes we have a car as well (this thread is about motorcycles, but I have NEVER been pulled over in the car, not has my partner). I have not been singled out on the motorcycle ever. I have gotten three tickets in Bangkok all of which I earned

I got one ticket in Pattaya (wrong way on a one-way) and a couple in Hua Hin in my first few months in the country (no helmet on short jaunts).

So, where do I drive? All over the country. A year + living in Phuket and never a ticket (even though I got pulled over at the checkpoints often ....) No other tickets ... no other problems ...

We did get pulled over twice in Laos in 24 hours but that was probably due to having Thai tags.

(between the car and the motorcycles ---- 120k kilometers in 5 years)

Edited November 16, 2008 by jdinasia

[plasticpig]

Well im of to Soi 6, to get my Helmet checked.

anyone want to come.

[tropo]

Sarge ...... ugh ... where to start...

OK ... Yes I ride a motorcycle in Thailand .. every day for the last 5 years. Yes we have a car as well (this thread is about motorcycles, but I have NEVER been pulled over in the car, not has my partner). I have not been singled out on the motorcycle ever. I have gotten three tickets in Bangkok all of which I earned

I got one ticket in Pattaya (wrong way on a one-way) and a couple in Hua Hin in my first few months in the country (no helmet on short jaunts).

So, where do I drive? All over the country. A year + living in Phuket and never a ticket (even though I got pulled over at the checkpoints often ....) No other tickets ... no other problems ...

We did get pulled over twice in Laos in 24 hours but that was probably due to having Thai tags.

(between the car and the motorcycles ---- 120k kilometers in 5 years)

I've ridden almost exclusively around the tourist areas of Pattaya for 3 years and never been singled out.

I forgot to mention, on the 2 occassions I got tickets I earned (wrong way up a one-way street), I was given genuine tickets which I promptly paid at the local Soi 9 station. There was never an attempt to get cash off me on the street.

I never ride without a helmet, and I never get pulled over. I have a degree of respect for the local cops and the way they operate. They really aren't such a bad bunch of guys.

[tattoodrob]

The police set up checkpoints regularly all over.

They don't single out farang and are quite nice .... so .....?????

duh!!!!! if you read my post you would see that they do single out farang(unless im lying just for the sake of it) .......not at those large regular official checkpoints with 20 cops on sukhumvit rd,3rd road,pattaya tai etc ......but happens on a regular basis at intersections and other places around town where theres only 1 or 2 cops working. if they aint seen a farang for a while then might start on the thais......but i think as less farangs about then thats why they now make it look like there playing fair,come high season(open hunting season) it will change against farang more .sorry to be negative but i call it as i see it and not from hearsay

duh!!!!!!

not my experience (or apparently that of many other farang that live or ride there)

do you actually drive in Thailand? and if you do, what you drive and where you drive?

Yes they're all polite (Thai are polite people unless you seriously annoy them), but some take delight in stopping drivers (foreign or Thai) whom they believe they have the slightest excuse to fleece money. One things that annoys me is how they demand your driver licence, get hold of it and then walk away, returning a minute later still clutching your licence and not letting it go until you paid them tea money.

Q. when a traffic/motorway policeman stops you, ask you questions and then he start stroking your stomach, what does that mean?

A. i would think he quite likes you to stroke your stomach,was he asking personal questions?..... or have you got the brit belly(look pregnant) then maybe he was inwardly laughing at you while touching you there,otherwise i got no idea.

[tattoodrob]

The police set up checkpoints regularly all over.

They don't single out farang and are quite nice .... so .....?????

duh!!!!! if you read my post you would see that they do single out farang(unless im lying just for the sake of it) .......not at those large regular official checkpoints with 20 cops on sukhumvit rd,3rd road,pattaya tai etc ......but happens on a regular basis at intersections and other places around town where theres only 1 or 2 cops working. if they aint seen a farang for a while then might start on the thais......but i think as less farangs about then thats why they now make it look like there playing fair,come high season(open hunting season) it will change against farang more .sorry to be negative but i call it as i see it and not from hearsay

duh!!!!!!

not my experience (or apparently that of many other farang that live or ride there)

oh well,just my bad luck then

next youll be saying there arent any corrrupt coppers here.......its all in my head

Edited November 16, 2008 by tattoodrob

[jdinasia]

tattoodrob ---- dear ... nobody called you a liar, just that many people do not see it your way...

so relax ... but if you read in this thread apparently many other people do not have these issues. I won't say there are not any corrupt police here, but I wouldn't say that about anywhere else either!

[tattoodrob]

tattoodrob ---- dear ... nobody called you a liar, just that many people do not see it your way...

so relax ... but if you read in this thread apparently many other people do not have these issues. I won't say there are not any corrupt police here, but I wouldn't say that about anywhere else either!

ok im relaxed now .....i understand others havent had these issues,infact these issues only happen more in very central pattaya so maybe others havent noticed it if they arent a regular bike rider there, i was pointing out more that if i wasnt wearing a hat and thais werent wearing a hat that the farang(me in this instance) would definitely be waved over,and i would point this out to the cop and ask why others were not being pulled over,obviously they usually just ignore you or very rarely ,after i have said this, they have even waved at thais to stop and the thais have just ignored them without any problem(by the way i tried this once...not a good idea,dont think they like losing face with a farang ignoring them).

anyway i know i should wear a cap(and do now) at all times and so its my own fault but i dont like being singled out,thousands of thais ride around town without bike number,licence ,hat,4 on a bike etc and do so regularly but everytime i had no helmet i would get problems and then see more serious lawbreakers riding around without problems. do you think 3 or 4 farangs on a bike even with hats wouldnt be stopped.....i think they would for sure and very quickly..........i dont mind the law being applied to everyone in the same manner but the law seems to change depending on the individual copper involved.

as i said maybe my bad luck and my fault for sticking out more in a crowd of thais.....im still relaxed

Edited November 16, 2008 by tattoodrob