Police On Alert As Revelers Return To Bangkok; Road Fatalities Climb Up

[ableguy]

Normally one says that "alcohol was involved" when talking about road safety figures as it is often impossible to apportion blame in an incident entirely to any one party.

Unless a farang is involved then the case is cut and dsried.

[Deeral]

Normally one says that "alcohol was involved" when talking about road safety figures as it is often impossible to apportion blame in an incident entirely to any one party.

Unless a farang is involved then the case is cut and dsried.

THat is so wrong - it is FAR from "cut and dried - whether your view comes from cynicism, ignorance or a purely racist attitude I wouldn't know but as a sweeping generalisation it is equally as facile as the posts suggesting someone goes home.

[anterian]

I used to think that the PAD observation that Thai countryfolk were uneducated fools not worthy of the vote was simply political propaganda. Having lived the last five years in a suburban village I am starting to agree, the amount of stupid behaviour and drunkenness I see daily is only exceeded by what i see at Songkran.

[PlastikbinLina]

Pardon my ignorance but what is it that the Traffic Police actually do apart from road blocks to check licenses etc. I cannot recall seeing radar devices, speed cameras, or other traditional means of catching speedsters? And it is mostly speed that kills. The anguish and heartbreak that thousands of Thais, and others, suffer every year because of the road toll don't seem to make any difference to accident prevention methods.

[Just1Voice]

Traffic Police is just another one of the Oxymoron phrases found in abundance in LOS.

[Deeral]

Pardon my ignorance but what is it that the Traffic Police actually do apart from road blocks to check licenses etc. I cannot recall seeing radar devices, speed cameras, or other traditional means of catching speedsters? And it is mostly speed that kills. The anguish and heartbreak that thousands of Thais, and others, suffer every year because of the road toll don't seem to make any difference to accident prevention methods.

At Song khran - police - traffic or otherwise erect large gazebos near their station - it wouldn't pay to stray to far - and furnish them with tables and chairs, put a triangle with a flashing light in the middle of the road and then sit there for days chatting and watching the dangerous driving.If you thought there was a modicum of method or intelligence to the operation just look at how they set out the traffic cones and metal barriers - possibly responsible for more incidents and injury than all the local drunk drivers put together.

It really is quite pitiful and any reduction claimed in road deaths is surely coincidental rather than consequential.

[jimbeam1]

I was driving from Phuket to Hua Hin (started at 06:00) over a distance of about 630 Km. No special dense traffic unless at the beginning of the afternoon (13:00 onwards). Accidents more and more as approaching Hua Hin, most of them by driving too closely to each other and not being able to break at short distance anymore (tail-licking).

But the helmets worry me the most. Once out of the cities or the communities: NO ONE CARRIES A HELMET ANYMORE.... Some of them even have them in their small motorbike in front, in case there is control... Can it be more dumb than that?

Generally spoken: no aggressive driving, correct behaviour, safe, slowly (not more than 110 Km/hr)and respectful towards each other. In my opinion a big difference with last year. Or did I take the right moment to drive home? I arrived at 14:00 in Hua Hin at the Hotel or 630 km in 8 hours...

I saw a guy yesterday riding a motorbike one handed. In his other hand, his crash helmet?

jb1

Some will die, some will get injured and maybe wiser, this happens all over the world, some don't know better, some don't care, many are drunk, there could never be enough police to handle such a problem, same as being on the phone, eating, some in a hurry (hurry to die) Age makes no difference, could be unknowing death wishes. The problem is, they also take the lives of caring safe riding or driving people.

No place to run, no place to hide, just be damm careful.

Wow! What have you been smoking?

I had to smile at that. As David Crosby once said "Words of Sheer Profundity"

jb1

[jimbeam1]

18 wheeler crashes into bus in Kanchanaburi, killing 2 and injuring 18 /TAN_network

I rest my case?

Before anyone else comes in about road design and engineering. I rest your case also?

I do this without any knowlege of what happened.

Nice one D/C

jb1

[Gladiator]

Also i am told that songkran was rained out around Chiang Mai.

Not where I live !

[sunnyrolfe]

18 wheeler crashes into bus in Kanchanaburi, killing 2 and injuring 18 /TAN_network

I rest my case?

Before anyone else comes in about road design and engineering. I rest your case also?

I do this without any knowlege of what happened.

Nice one D/C

jb1

Agree entirely. Same old story every time. When they do more than just fine people for drinking and driving and when the police themselves all wear helmets whilst riding motorbikes as opposed to the peaked caps, we may start getting somewhere.No amount of animist so called buddha amulets or bamboo inflicted tattoos can help a drunk guy without a helmet.

[johncat1]

My girl friend was one of the statistics this Songkran.

Man ran out in front of her motorbike.

I asked her " was he drunk " ? " probably " she replied.

I then asked were you drunk ( returning from an office party ) " probably " she replied.

Just another typical Songkran accident !!!!

Luckily both only had minor injuries and a lot of bruises.

Incidentally What do the police do at the thousands of extra roadside check points ??

I drove through hundreds of them and never saw the police stop anyone.

All the police seemed to be doing were watching TV and eating / chatting ( maybe drinking too ? )

[johncat1]

Also i am told that songkran was rained out around Chiang Mai.

Only one day, the rest was fine

Yes it rained but people kept throwing water. So no rain out.

Erm am I missing something here ?

I thought the idea of Songkran festivities was to play with water and get wet . So what difference does the rain make apart from making the talcum powder wet ?

[carvets]

Amongst all the baffling behavior involving police here it's the seemingly lax attitude towards drink driving that strikes me. Saw a young swede on a bike hit a car driven by a thai woman . Lucky he was only going slow and he did have a helmet on . But he was so drunk he could not walk or talk . He could not tell us where his hotel was and he didn't know where he was. He kept saying " I know you I drink in your bar all the time . I don't even drink and don't go to bars . When the police came and realized the woman was not going to take it any further he packed up his walkie talkie and left telling the stunned drunk to go to hospital ......but how ? Get back on his bike and bounce off cars till he got there? There was no warning or fine or breath analysis , no punishment of any kind . Yet I have had my bike confiscated and had to pay a fine for parking on the wrong side of the road.

In the end he was taken to hospital by the car owner and I was left scratching my head at what had just happened .

But after being here a while I now scratch my head less as I'm more worried about losing my hair than trying to figure this place out .

[Deeral]

My girl friend was one of the statistics this Songkran.

Man ran out in front of her motorbike.

I asked her " was he drunk " ? " probably " she replied.

I then asked were you drunk ( returning from an office party ) " probably " she replied.

Just another typical Songkran accident !!!!

Luckily both only had minor injuries and a lot of bruises.

Incidentally What do the police do at the thousands of extra roadside check points ??

I drove through hundreds of them and never saw the police stop anyone.

All the police seemed to be doing were watching TV and eating / chatting ( maybe drinking too ? )

"One of the statistics" - really who counted it and who added it to the list?

THere will be thousands of incidents over Song Khran that for one reason or another simply don't get to register.a minor incident or one where the collision or connection with drink has been covered up....etc etc......

[johncat1]

My girl friend was one of the statistics this Songkran.

Man ran out in front of her motorbike.

I asked her " was he drunk " ? " probably " she replied.

I then asked were you drunk ( returning from an office party ) " probably " she replied.

Just another typical Songkran accident !!!!

Luckily both only had minor injuries and a lot of bruises.

Incidentally What do the police do at the thousands of extra roadside check points ??

I drove through hundreds of them and never saw the police stop anyone.

All the police seemed to be doing were watching TV and eating / chatting ( maybe drinking too ? )

"One of the statistics" - really who counted it and who added it to the list?

THere will be thousands of incidents over Song Khran that for one reason or another simply don't get to register.a minor incident or one where the collision or connection with drink has been covered up....etc etc......

I think when police attend and document an accident the chances are it will become official !!

BUT that was not the point !!

The point was just how easily Thai people accept drunk driving accidents AND what little the police do about them.

As I said I found all these Party tents full of police and their families at so called police checkpoints a complete waste of time

[Deeral]

My girl friend was one of the statistics this Songkran.

Man ran out in front of her motorbike.

I asked her " was he drunk " ? " probably " she replied.

I then asked were you drunk ( returning from an office party ) " probably " she replied.

Just another typical Songkran accident !!!!

Luckily both only had minor injuries and a lot of bruises.

Incidentally What do the police do at the thousands of extra roadside check points ??

I drove through hundreds of them and never saw the police stop anyone.

All the police seemed to be doing were watching TV and eating / chatting ( maybe drinking too ? )

"One of the statistics" - really who counted it and who added it to the list?

THere will be thousands of incidents over Song Khran that for one reason or another simply don't get to register.a minor incident or one where the collision or connection with drink has been covered up....etc etc......

I think when police attend and document an accident the chances are it will become official !!

BUT that was not the point !!

The point was just how easily Thai people accept drunk driving accidents AND what little the police do about them.

As I said I found all these Party tents full of police and their families at so called police checkpoints a complete waste of time

but you also raise intentionally or not TWO other issues

One that in an "accident" blame never rests solely with one party - poor driving or bad reactions due to drink may contribute to how serious an incident is even if that person was driving apparently well within the law and the other made a serious error of judgement.

The second issue is the gathering and processing of information by the police - as anyone who has worked in a western police force will tell you the standard of policing in Thailand in on way approaches the standards of Western policing - and one can have little doubt that the gathering of reliable information for statistics will be WELL below par.

Edited April 18, 2011 by Deeral