3 Adults On A Motorbike-is It Legal?

[Utterlyuseful]

I know locals often load up to 5 on a bike, but will 3 foreigners wearing helmets be routinely stopped and fined in Pattaya?

[Mario2008]

Legal or not, consider first if it is safe.

[REDRAM]

There is nothing that is routine about Thailand....if you can get 3 fat Farang asses on a motorbike GO FOR IT!

[FarangBuddha]

I have read that the law is the legal max is 2 people (adult or child) on a motorbike. You have been warned...no more winging no matter how many Thai people can be balanced on one (along with their dogs)

[anothertorres]

the answer is, no. no, it's not legal. now you get those three stooges on that monster and ride!

[Gigabyte]

You can be alone on the bike, wearing helmet and have all your papers legal, be sober and not break the law, and you still can be stopped and fined for whatever reason... You've been warned!

[kicking]

Got stopped and fined (paid at Soi 9) for this offense once. It is not legal.

[anothertorres]

You can be alone on the bike, wearing helmet and have all your papers legal, be sober and not break the law, and you still can be stopped and fined for whatever reason... You've been warned!

that's boogeyman talk.

[DonTron]

3 people on a bike is for amateurs... try this one instead:

(yes, they are 8!!!)

[neverdie]

yes, i once got fined for that, many many moons ago. Its illegal.

[anothertorres]

omg. 8 PLUS a bucket of joint compound!

[jackbox]

Thai law states that only two passengers can be on a motorbike. Any more than that you can be stopped and fined. If you are tell the cop you want to pay a fine now and give him 100 baht. That usually is enough.

[Basil B]

You can be alone on the bike, wearing helmet and have all your papers legal, be sober and not break the law, and you still can be stopped and fined for whatever reason... You've been warned!

Actually happen to you or just hearsay?

Beware if you have travel insurance, it probably will not cover you for for riding a motor bike, not even as a pillion passenger on a motor bike taxi.

[Gigabyte]

You can be alone on the bike, wearing helmet and have all your papers legal, be sober and not break the law, and you still can be stopped and fined for whatever reason... You've been warned!

that's boogeyman talk.

Nope. They will say that you were speeding, were not driving on the left, didn't use your flasher, etc... Then you have to argue with them and pay a fine anyway because they have the last word. Happened to me more than once.

[anothertorres]

Nope. They will say that you were speeding, were not driving on the left, didn't use your flasher, etc... Then you have to argue with them and pay a fine anyway because they have the last word. Happened to me more than once.

that's seriously unlucky. you must stick out pretty bad...

[basjke]

Before I came here I had a team in my homecountry and we made the first page of the newspapers when we were riding with 6 on a suzuki gsxr one sitting on another ones shoulders.

Although we drove one wheel and at a speed of around 150 Km/h I couldn't believe my eyes when I arrived here

[dmax]

why would you even want to unless acting the idiot ?

[pepsi666]

why would you even want to unless acting the idiot ?

That dont sound like he was acting, more like already is

[thrawn60]

Is there anywhere you can actually find the traffic laws/rules in Thailand in English?

With all these questions it would be nice to be able to read it somewhere, and so prevent that you do something like putting 10 people in the back of the pick up if that's illegal also?

Michael

[zakk9]

Is there anywhere you can actually find the traffic laws/rules in Thailand in English?

They have written them down???

Edited May 4, 2010 by zakk9

[zakk9]

Nope. They will say that you were speeding, were not driving on the left, didn't use your flasher, etc... Then you have to argue with them and pay a fine anyway because they have the last word. Happened to me more than once.

that's seriously unlucky. you must stick out pretty bad...

Happened to me too, in Bangkok. Because of the controls, I was always driving on the left. So, at one control, they stopped me anyway, telling me that since they were in the left lane stopping people, I should have been driving in the next one (and guess what they would have done then...). I talked myself out of it, but it took almost 10 minutes.

[raro]

Thai law states that only two passengers can be on a motorbike. Any more than that you can be stopped and fined. If you are tell the cop you want to pay a fine now and give him 100 baht. That usually is enough.

this constitutes bribing and is illegal as well.

No more illegal advises in here, no more flaming and so on. Hope I was clear.

[Spalpeen]

8 on a bike is nothing. The Indians can do much better.

I've been fined - sorry, robbed - twice for "driving on the right" even though I was overtaking trucks on my left on a dual carriageway. Doesn't do much for police credibility.

[Atmos]

we do four regularly on the 9km trip to markets.

I'm had to impose some rules though, Pat cannot exceed 40km/h when she's riding, for Ploy the limit is 50km/h.

Rules are rules, and I may sound like I'm being too tough on them but I claim privilege as owner of bike and payer of gasoline.

I'll review the speed limitations later in the year, Pat turns 5 in August but I don't think she's ready to step up to 50km/h, needs improvement on her speed into corners, and using brakes. Ploy, well at 10 she's quite competent but need more attention to awareness of what's around - mirrors are not just for checking her hair.

[raro]

you don't mean that serious, do you??

[anothertorres]

we do four regularly on the 9km trip to markets.

I'm had to impose some rules though, Pat cannot exceed 40km/h when she's riding, for Ploy the limit is 50km/h.

Rules are rules, and I may sound like I'm being too tough on them but I claim privilege as owner of bike and payer of gasoline.

I'll review the speed limitations later in the year, Pat turns 5 in August but I don't think she's ready to step up to 50km/h, needs improvement on her speed into corners, and using brakes. Ploy, well at 10 she's quite competent but need more attention to awareness of what's around - mirrors are not just for checking her hair.

haha, 9km trip. Pat flipped me off once for cutting her off. true story...

[Atmos]

haha, 9km trip. Pat flipped me off once for cutting her off. true story...

no, but she does like to toot the horn at dogs!

It's a Fino, automatic, decent 'footboard' for Pat to stand on, me seated behind (then Ploy, Nok) I only take my hand off the throttle on the straights when she likes to open it up. But always ready to take over.

Ploy - Fino elec start, auto, low seat height, slow acceleration and easy to manage, ideal to learn on.

These are farm kids, their cousin, boy of 11, has spent all the hols working with his dad and learning to operate various farm machinery; I've seen 2 local boys with a sidecar fitted on a Honda - they can ride it with the sidecar wheel in the air, no problem. I overtook a medium size Kubota tractor today on the open road thought it was a midget driving, but no, a boy looked about 10.

[Beardog]

Definitely Illegal . 400 baht the first time & the second time 600 baht + more if all pass. are not wearing helmets. I only drive 3 on a bike in Bang Saray. The heat here drive 3 or 4 on a bike & don't give a rats ass about Pattaya- No helmet needed around town either.

[stingray]

There is nothing that is routine about Thailand....if you can get 3 fat Farang asses on a motorbike GO FOR IT!

Including a Dog in the front who drives the bike!

[noahvail]

You can be alone on the bike, wearing helmet and have all your papers legal, be sober and not break the law, and you still can be stopped and fined for whatever reason... You've been warned!

that's boogeyman talk.

Nope, it's for real. I've gotten stopped for riding the right hand lane when I'd been in the left for the prior 10km. Was told that the cop a long way down the road spotted me. Yeah, right. 100 baht. Gotten stopped because I only had one headlight on - which the EU convention has made the way to go for all bikes from 2010 onward. Try to explain...no? Ok, here, read the book about it - it's in Thai. He reads it, says doesn't matter, illegal here. So what is legal? You pay fine. How much? 200 baht. I've only got a hundred. Ok, good.

One rider reported here about a year ago that he was stopped and fined because his bike was...black.

I've now got a vid cam quick-mounted for the bike and the truck. You want to see their faces when I turn the camera with that little red light on, onto their face and helmet number. They walk away quickly.

Thing is, if there's one or two members of the Federales, it's often a scam. If there's a bunch of them, and there's a definite reason for you to get a written ticket, there's no scam.

BTW, if you carry one person in the back of your pickup, your insurance cover is immediately void. And it's illegal. But I've counted more than a dozen kids on their way to a team game in the back of a brand-new, red-plated truck. Amazing Thailand. Who cares about the truck anyway - it's the kids who get thrown out and killed or maimed when there's an accident. And sadly, there are accidents like that.