Baht Bus Confidential: True Life Experiences From The Front Lines

[Jingthing]

A couple looked in disbelief

The look of disbelief. Priceless. Good story!

[sendbaht]

I've been pretty lucky with these guys so far. Here in CM I have been transported to my destination that seems so far for small amount of baht that I felt guilty at times.

In the 80s I live in Pattaya. Being new in town I'd jump in a baht bus heading in a different direction than I wanted to go. Did not realize this for the first 1 or 2k. The baht driver would turn, I'd ring the bell and jump out. He knew I needed to go in a different direction and when I would reach to pay they would smile and wave me goodbye. Sweet really.

Now if you want to talk about the trike drivers in the Philippines that's a whole other story. I've learn to pay those guys first then there is no problems.

[Spalpeen]

Twice within the last week, while driving around Pattaya, I've had baht bus drivers stop and flash their lights to let me cross in front of them. At least some of them are quite civil.

[SirPaul]

If you get where you want to go without too much hassle - a 10 bhat tip does not hurt. So, if you want a nice day, and you think you have had a nice journey, tip the driver. Trying to save 10 Bhat just because you think you are on a bus is stupid, you probably will give all your savings to your lovely Thai lady anyway, who probably knows a few taxi drivers. So does it really matter?

[SirPaul]

tip everyone and show you appreciate service.

[britmaveric]

tip everyone and you end up with an expectation of a tip everytime with sh*te service.

[SirPaul]

tip everyone and you end up with an expectation of a tip everytime with sh*te service.

Well you do not tip when you get sh*te service. Should not have to explain that one. In fact you do the opposite complain. You tip if you get OK to good service, vary the tip level accordingly and everyone is happy - big tippers are big players

Be happy and tip everyone!

Edited February 1, 2009 by SirPaul

[Jingthing]

Bus drivers are not tipped in any culture. This discussion of tipping bus drivers is absurd.

Another baht bus issue seldom discussed is for baht bus users who need to go places further than inner Jomtien. The other day I simply wanted to go as far as Soi Chayaphruek which isn't all that far out and should be expected on a bus going in that direction. I don't ride this route that often but my observation is that in the majority of cases they do go as far as there, but not always. So it is pot luck for riders going this way routinely. The other day the driver stopped the bus on me short of Soi Chayaphruek and attempted to turn the bus ride into a taxi ride. I expressed interest in going as far as the restaurants at the end of the road which he quoted 100 baht (quite a hike from a 10 baht bus ride, huh?). I rejected it and just got off the bus because I knew he was not now going to go to Soi Chayaphruek without a major scene. The funny thing is that I wanted to pay him 10 baht anyway (I am just a nice guy that way) and I started to try to pay him but he closed the window and sped off.

My question is this, isn't there a reasonable expectation that a southbound Jomtien beach road baht bus will go at least as far as Soi Chayaphruek and remain a bus? I mean by the idealized standards of the baht bus collective. Aren't these trucks mandated to act as buses when you start the ride as a BUS ride, rather than a taxi charter ride?

Edited February 1, 2009 by Jingthing

[patklang]

WHAT A GREAT PLACE TO LIVE PATTHAYA,WHY YOU PEOPLE DON'T MOVE TO THAILAND INSTEAD OF PATTHAYA

its called Pattaya mate,and Pattaya is in Thailand.Here the lesson ends

[Jingthing]

WHAT A GREAT PLACE TO LIVE PATTHAYA,WHY YOU PEOPLE DON'T MOVE TO THAILAND INSTEAD OF PATTHAYA

its called Pattaya mate,and Pattaya is in Thailand.Here the lesson ends

Let me check ... because we LIKE it here.

[soundman]

WHAT A GREAT PLACE TO LIVE PATTHAYA,WHY YOU PEOPLE DON'T MOVE TO THAILAND INSTEAD OF PATTHAYA

its called Pattaya mate,and Pattaya is in Thailand.Here the lesson ends

I do believe TJan is Thai and:

พัทยา phat tha yaa

1.[noun] a tax or tithe

2.[noun] the southwest wind

3.[proper noun, geographical, formal] Pattaya, the beach resort on the Gulf of Thailand, southeast of Bangkok

from thai-language.com.

[Jingthing]

There is of course no standard spelling for romanized Thai, so you can spell things however you like. Liberating, innit?

5 baht, 10 bath, 20 bats, its all a carnival ...

Edited February 1, 2009 by Jingthing

[SirPaul]

Bhat busses cannot be expected to go anywhere!

Tipping the driver of a Bhat bus is not the same as tipping someone that works for a bus company - why, well they maintain the vehicle and answer to no-one. You see I would never tip a bus driver from North Pattaya bus garage going to Bangkok (unless he did something more than his job, e.g. very helpful with heavy lugguage).

So there you have it, you may consider the bhat bus driver a bus driver, but technically he is not as he is solely responsible for the vehicle and journey. So tipping these drivers is more than appropriate.

[Jingthing]

I think they lease the buses from the BAHT BUS COLLECTIVE and are subject to follow the rules of the BAHT BUS COLLECTIVE. I am unclear whether the city government "regulates" their operation but I have seen some press reports that indicative some kind of connection there as well. When they run as buses (you get on without speaking and go on their expected route) they are BUSES.

Back to tipping, different countries have different tipping cultures. Thai people do NOT tip real taxi drivers in Bangkok. They may leave the round up change. On a 10 baht fare, the next bill is a 20 baht, a 100 percent tip is not round up change. So even if we humor you and agree that baht buses are taxis (when not on charter) Thai culture doesn't see that as a tipping situation. So we should act differently than the local culture? Why?

Edited February 5, 2009 by Jingthing

[Pistolbelt]

getting change in 1 bhat coins. I always save them in my back pocket for those bastards and sometimes only give them nine back. I'm real nasty see.

[Jingthing]

getting change in 1 bhat coins. I always save them in my back pocket for those bastards and sometimes only give them nine back. I'm real nasty see.

Mix in some two baht coins, "drives" them nuts, those that aren't nuts already.

[popshirt]

Last evening my maid called a baht bus as a taxi service to help her deliver some large boxes and a suitcase. The driver quoted 150 baht for the trip. The bus arrived and there was already a farang on board. They all drove away and where the driver had to make a turn to continue his "private taxi" service, he stopped, got out, and told the farang to get out of the bus. The farang was apparently nowhere near where he wanted to go and protested, but did get off. The farang then refused to pay as he would have to take another baht bus. The driver got out of the bus and punched the farang with force--two times--and then drove away. My maid was humiliated and felt so sorry for the farang.

Isn't it "quaint" and "sooo cheap" to have baht busses in Pattaya? It is the only reason I have a car.

[Jingthing]

That is another good reason it is justified to keep the fares low. It is quite common to be forced to take more buses and pay more fares than expected to go from point A to point B (as there is no transfer system). They do not consistently behave as reliable buses on a predictable route. It is too bad the farang did not get the bus number. That driver should be in PRISON! That said, I think the farang should have paid anyway. As some of the drivers are violent thugs, even if abused it is simply NOT WORTH IT to be risk being physically attacked.

Edited February 7, 2009 by Jingthing

[SirPaul]

The risk of not going where you need to go is known, you know before you get on the bhat bus, so not to pay 10 bhat is a disgrace. If he wants to go where he needs to go, get a motorbike taxi or hire the bus as a taxi. I feel the Thai taxi driver had had one too many stupid foreigners that day, I know the feeling!

It does not matter who owns the vehicles, they are being driven like taxis but have regulations that also make them busses with undefined routes. So, if you have a good ride, get to where you want to go easily, no transfers etc a 10 bhat tip is appropriate as paying 20 bhat is a lot less than getting a motorbike taxi or hiring the bus as a taxi. I cannot beleive that you view it the other way -a 100% tip. The 100% tip is when you are paying around 200 Bhat or more for something and you give double. So paying 20 english pence (at a bad exchange rate) and double it to 40 pence is not in my book giving a 100 per cent tip - what you are doing is showing appreciation and still paying peanuts to do so.

Sometimes those that stay too long in Thailand lose the plot. If you have a good and easy journey, a 10 bhat tip should not even be an issue. People wil happily pay and get ripped off in the bars and go-go clubs, even be ripped off by their loved ones, and we are not talking 10 bhat here. So saying you should never tip a bhat bus driver 10 Bhat when you have had a good ride because this is 100 per cent of the fair is a joke. Now, in some places in Pattaya if you give a 10 bhat tip I would advise that it is better not to tip for this could be seen as an insult as what you are saying is that the service is rubbish.

[loong]

.....

I have been driving a London Taxi for over 20 years so I feel more qualified than most on this subject.

The risk of not going where you need to go is known, you know before you get on the bhat bus, so not to pay 10 bhat is a disgrace. If he wants to go where he needs to go, get a motorbike taxi or hire the bus as a taxi. I feel the Thai taxi driver had had one too many stupid foreigners that day, I know the feeling!

It does not matter who owns the vehicles, they are being driven like taxis but have regulations that also make them busses with undefined routes. So, if you have a good ride, get to where you want to go easily, no transfers etc a 10 bhat tip is appropriate as paying 20 bhat is a lot less than getting a motorbike taxi or hiring the bus as a taxi. I cannot beleive that you view it the other way -a 100% tip. The 100% tip is when you are paying around 200 Bhat or more for something and you give double. So paying 20 english pence (at a bad exchange rate) and double it to 40 pence is not in my book giving a 100 per cent tip - what you are doing is showing appreciation and still paying peanuts to do so.

Sometimes those that stay too long in Thailand lose the plot. If you have a good and easy journey, a 10 bhat tip should not even be an issue. People wil happily pay and get ripped off in the bars and go-go clubs, even be ripped off by their loved ones, and we are not talking 10 bhat here. So saying you should never tip a bhat bus driver 10 Bhat when you have had a good ride because this is 100 per cent of the fair is a joke. Now, in some places in Pattaya if you give a 10 bhat tip I would advise that it is better not to tip for this could be seen as an insult as what you are saying is that the service is rubbish.

You are totally wrong and have a biased viewpoint.

If I board a baht bus heading north on Soi Bhuakhow at the Tue/Fri market I should have every confidence that it will take me to my destination, Pattaya Klang. That is the normal route. If that bus turns left at the first soi, there should be no fare charged. That's the way it always used to be. Many times in the past I have boarded a baht bus that somebody has later chartered. The bus continued on the normal route and then stopped where he will turn off to where he has been chartered. He would then tell the other passengers to get off. The driver never used to charge, but he nearly always took his other passengers as far as he could along the expected route.

I'm sure that the baht bus drivers would love your suggestion that if people can't trust the driver to use the well known and accepted routes that they should use a motorbike instead. That would result in a lot of empty baht buses and no wages for the driver.

Just because London taxi drivers expect a tip, that is no reason to tip a baht bus driver. Tip for what? He drives from A to B, doesn't engage in chat with you. In what way can he give good service? Does he get out at every stop and help people off, does he carry their bags? No. There is no customer care involved at all. The driver cannot improve on what the passenger has a right to expect. By the same token, when a driver drives recklessy at dangerous speeds and brakes sharply should we all reverse-tip and pay him less because of his poor service?

I always thought that maths was not a strongpoint of taxi drivers. a 10 Baht tip on a 10 Baht fare is 100%.Full stop.

Actually, maybe you have a point, after all the driver has expenses, so maybe he only earns 5 baht for the fare. So 10 Baht tip on top of 5 Baht is 200%.

You say that the tip is not 100% because the fare is only 10 Baht. The fare for ONE passenger is 10 Baht. A full bus may have as many as 15 passengers and if 15 passengers all follow your suggestion and pay 10 Baht tip, that's 150 Baht tip for a 5 minute ride. Maybe Londoners are so rich that they don't care about money, but I wouldn't give a taxi driver a 3 pound tip for a 5 minute ride.

I appreciate that baht buses are not full all the time, but, especially in high season, I think it not unreasonable that they may carry average 300 passengers a shift. If all tipped him for doing nothing extraordinary that would be 3,000 Baht every day, maybe 90,000 Baht per month. A good income for somebody whos only qualification is being able to drive.

As already stated by others, if too many farang started tipping drivers, then it will be expected and in the end demanded.

[Jingthing]

OK, I have a trivial incident to report. Nothing came of it but it is kind of funny, and perhaps instructive, and who knows it could have potentially turned into a famous eat a donut in 7-11, go to jail story.

I call it the tale of the BAHT BUS BUZZER HOT POTATO

So I push a buzzer to stop the bus.

The bus stopped.

The buzzer didn't!

There was a driver and a lady, the lady got out when I got out.

We both knew what was going on, the buzzer was still going so it was obviously BROKEN.

You would think: NOT MY PROBLEM.

But remember, this is Thailand and this was a baht bus where the bread and butter is made with 5 and 10 baht coins but the GRAVY is made by exploiting foreigners.

So she starts getting nasty (I just wanted to pay and get out of there quick) and demands to know WHICH buzzer. She was fiddling with both possible buzzers and the buzzing stopped so you would think SHE would have known which one she fixed. She was ALREADY nasty even before asking, like she was ACCUSING me of breaking her <deleted>' buzzer. I would have LOVED to tell her which buzzer, but honestly I could not. I didn't remember. I honestly didn't bother to remember which one I buzzed, it could have been one of two, and she knew that also from where I was sitting. So I tell her I don't remember in Thai. As if the maintenance of her bus is my business. Then it starts to get very tense. I sense she is on the verge of demanding MONEY from me to fix her buzzer on threat of calling the police. Already she has delayed taking the fare money so I now forcefully give her the money, and move away from the scene as quickly as I can, without running. I honestly think she wanted to blame me for the broken buzzer. But as I said, it ended well (for me) I got out of there. Cheers!

So now that you have read my story, do any of you Thai-ier than Thais dare to tell me I should have offered to pay to fix the buzzer because OBVIOUSLY I broke it as I was the last person to touch it?

Edited May 24, 2009 by Jingthing

[Gary A]

Double pricing is fairly common in Thailand. Certain things being more expensive for the farang irritate me. The baht buses are NOT one of those things. I have always paid 10 baht within Pattaya and Jomtien while the Thais pay 5 baht. From Jomtien to Pattaya, always 20 baht. If I wait in the cattle truck at the corner of Pattaya Tai and second road, I always pay the 10 baht because the packed bus is uncomfortable. If I wave a bus down, then I pay 20 baht. Many of the Thais are coming from or going to work. How would you like to earn 200 baht or less per day and have to pay 20 baht to and from Jomtien. I'm quite happy to subsidize their fare. Guys who resent paying that are not acting on their principles, they're simply cheap Charlies.

[threelegcowboy]

Try going on a JOY ride around Patters (See how long you can stay on the bus). When you got alot of time take a ride for 10B. About half the time they dont notice at all. Then other times they make a few turns, get out and ask where you are going. The correct answer is just to point the direction the bus is going.

They ask you to get off at certain points so this is not a 100% method. It can be fun though.

[threelegcowboy]

Dont complain about this bus service as it is not too far from PERFECT. Just visit Phuket to see how valuable Pattaya service is.

[Jingthing]

Dont complain about this bus service as it is not too far from PERFECT. Just visit Phuket to see how valuable Pattaya service is.

Agreed. We are much better off here than Phuket. What that has to do with PATTAYA baht buses though, I am not so sure.

Edited December 17, 2009 by Jingthing

[Jingthing]

Double pricing is fairly common in Thailand. Certain things being more expensive for the farang irritate me. The baht buses are NOT one of those things. I have always paid 10 baht within Pattaya and Jomtien while the Thais pay 5 baht. From Jomtien to Pattaya, always 20 baht. If I wait in the cattle truck at the corner of Pattaya Tai and second road, I always pay the 10 baht because the packed bus is uncomfortable. If I wave a bus down, then I pay 20 baht. Many of the Thais are coming from or going to work. How would you like to earn 200 baht or less per day and have to pay 20 baht to and from Jomtien. I'm quite happy to subsidize their fare. Guys who resent paying that are not acting on their principles, they're simply cheap Charlies.

That's daft. So do you pay double the bill at 7-11 to subsidize the poor Thais? BTW, I don't earn even one baht a day (for several years now), so can I ride the baht bus for free? By your logic, yes. Thank you! You are like some kind of socialist hero, like Che.

Edited December 17, 2009 by Jingthing

[deejah]

only read 2 pages so far

this is quite educational

hope my post is ON topic enough

a couple of times i got 9 baht in coins

single baht coins which is really annoying

so i might ask for a 10 baht coin or i will count them for fun before the driver pulls off

a few times i got yelled out for paying only 10 from jom to south of pat klang but north of pat tai

i never got in trouble for hopping off and not paying a baht bus that made an unexpected turn

kudos to the guys who pay 20 when asked

for 10 baht extra its often worth it to avoid confrontation

extortion or not

occasionally i will give 20 when i know i don't have to

i got really tired and sad of seeing so many empty baht buses this past year

i actually felt for them

especially with a lady and kids in the passenger seat

i NEVER get on a baht bus cue unless it is raining

i am seeing less and less of the 10 baht max posted signs

some drivers are kind

some are wanke_rs

a lot lot life

imagine doing their job!!!

do these guys actually make a living???

thanks for the thread

especially to the intelligent and civil posters!

aussiechick: great story!!!

i know you are female but heck you got balls!!!!

[Jingthing]

Yes, I agree the fares are fluid and subject to situational ethics. From both the riders and the drivers.

[Methuselah]

This topic gives me an opportunity to report an improbable experience.Three friends on holiday from UK and myself boarded a passenger free baht bus in Jomtien.After driving about 200 yards the driver stopped and walked to the rear of the baht bus.In this situation 9 times out of 10 I would have expected the familiar words "where you go?" from the driver,and expect him to try to negotiate a fare.

Surprisingly he was one of the good guys,and all he wanted to do was to warn us that pickpockets were becoming a bit of a fixture on baht buses and to be careful.

He deserved a medal,not just a tip.

[deejah]

hey

once i was preoccupied

and missed my stop at dolphin

rode all the way to the end of the line north

the guy gets out

i am thinking oh no

he says

where you go

i say dolphin and then realize what i did

so i say kha toed cap

he says never mind

i take you to dolphin free

(truth is i did pay to go back but still heart warming)