Eight Killed, 49 Injured As Chiang Mai-Bangkok Bus Crashes

[moskito]

sad news, but also a sad fact...

i was on a CM - BKK bus one (missed a flight & bus was only short notice option) time. Was on the upper deck & getting rather alarmed that we had drove for 5 hours without a single stop/rest for the driver. Soon after this i noticed the bus weaving across lanes, most everyone on the bus at this point was asleep. I jumped out of my seat, woke a Thai guy & we went down to see the driver & insisted that he stop the bus and rest. He refused saying he was ok - he clearly was not, but i reckon that this spoken intervention at that time more than likely avoided something similar to the events of this threads topic...

long distance bus travel in Thailand? for me, never again.

You have been really lucky they dont beat you up and kicked your a55 out of that bus....you cant be seriously doubt the driving skills of a THAI BUSDRIVER....are you insane??

[louialive]

My wife (thai) and I use coaches regularly in the UK as we go away to watch football matches with official travel club transport.

After the first couple of times going my wife was amazed when she realised that there were 2 drivers allocated to the coach trip even though these driverrs were driving 3 hours or so each way.

She said in Thailand she was scared stiff on the bus when she would go from BKK to Udon Thani to visit family. She said drivers were regularly driving very long hours and sniffing stuff to keep awake. Driving up north stopping to pick new passengers and then drive back again

I appreciate accidents can happen anywhere and do but precuations to minimise this sort of thing must be taken seriously.

RIP all who passed away and speedy recovery to those injured.

Edited December 7, 2011 by louialive

[timest]

15 years ago I was in busaccident in Loei, where 9 people died. I was lucky, I got only fracture in spine and 10.000 baht from buscompany (Chakapong Tour). (((((

[ALFREDO]

-Tino Thailand-

In Patong No Helmet = 300 Baht and a 30 Minutes waiting time in the Police station until its your turn to pay, as there are always some new fish in the net!

Alternatively a contribution to the mia noi fund is still between 50 - 100 baht for no helmet.

No, Sir, that alternative is not an option when its an official overseen checkpoint as it is in Patong on that place, a stone throw from the Policestation! (Thais pay official to!)

Similar to the Highway stoppings, mostly, I can buy my way out there with 100-200 Baht and move on without leaving the car. Convinient!

But, than from time to time the big officials are also present and a road side office-under a tree, is established.

There must be also some official money come in the Goverments pocket!

Out of the car, driving license presented and everything official with paper, waiting time and usualy more expensive.

In Patong it was for years a funny scene on the corner of Soi Bangla in daytime when newcomers got stopped and keys taken from theire Motorbikes only given back, when they presented the payed ticket from the Policestation, sometimes people lost an hour with all that proceedings!

No way to pay there black money!

Edited December 7, 2011 by ALFREDO

[yasorab]

Yes very sad but the Thai bus drivers seem to think that they own the roads. Its not the first time I have been forced onto the road side to avoid an on coming bus traveling at speed with its lights on, on the WRONG side of the road. I have traveled the lengh of the country and this practice is all to regular. Also the bus drivers are often (YAH'd) up on occassions because they spend so long at the wheel !! Sorry the driver was killed but had he survived he would have run away as also seeme to be the practice. The police do little or nothing about these all to frequent events and I agree things in this country MUST change re driving habits and rules but we know that we can only dream. Having spent some 15 years here I know that nothing will change. Sad

Edited December 8, 2011 by metisdead
Font reset.

[JeremyBowskill]

Religions are burdened with the concept of opposites such as good and evil, heaven and hell, and light and dark.

Buddhism recognizes the inherent one-ness of all things and sees these supposed opposites as facets of the unity and totality of existence. To follow the way of the Thai driver, you too must cast off these illusions of duality, such as the duality of two traffic lanes moving in opposite directions.

The Thai driver sees both lanes as part of the one road, and both directions as an expression of the eternal flow of all things. When you have grasped this concept, you will then understand why Thais so naturally swerve into oncoming traffic to overtake, and why they are completely serene as they travel along a busy road the wrong way.

It is because there is no wrong way, only 'The Way'. It's the same with traffic lights. To the enlightened Buddhist driver, red and green are not different colours, but simply different ways of seeing the same traffic light. Unlearn such deceptive Western notions as 'right of way' and your inner eye will open, which is the only way to proceed through an intersection in Thailand.

In Thailand, existence is not seen as a linear progression from birth to death, but rather as an endless cycle of life, death and rebirth. As one's soul gains experience and enlightenment from each lifetime, that soul is reincarnated into yet another lifetime until Nirvana is achieved and he, or she, escapes from this eternal cycle into a state of perpetual bliss. You never die, because life is a mere Honda Dream. Instead, you simply pass into another life for another chance to attain the wisdom necessary for enlightenment. You should also never fear death, even when careening along a twisty Phuket highway at 200km an hour with a bottomless chasm yawning right next to the road. This life will end when it is time, and no matter how often you check your mirrors, a pick-up truck can come screaming up from behind and make that time now. Accept this as inevitable, and you will be free to follow the way of the Thai driver, overtaking on blind corners and driving in the rain at breakneck speeds without a helmet.

Those who wish to spend a little longer in this lifetime should be especially careful when driving past Buddhist temples, because those drivers coming out have probably just made merit and may be looking for reincarnation while the getting is good.

Be like the water, which is the essence of all life and, as such, has many lessons to teach us. Water can fit into any container and seep through even the smallest crack, and so too can the Thai driver. He can manouever into any space between two speeding vehicles, no matter how small or inconvenient it may be, or at what speed he is travelling. When confronted by an obstacle, water does not stop, but flows around the obstacle, never losing momentum. So, too must you. When someone along life's highway has stopped in the middle of the road to smell the roses, or pick up some fried chicken, you must flow around the obstacle, never stopping your harmonious movement.

Patience is also necessary when leaving a car park and turning across an oncoming lane of vehicles. You must slowly edge onto the road, keeping an eye out for even the tiniest cracks in the teeming traffic. What is the sound of one horn honking?

As you travel the road to enlightenment, you will ponder this repeatedly, because it is a sound you will hear quite a bit. The answer is childishly simple. It depends on how many times it honks.

One honk indicates that someone is overtaking or coming through, while a series of several honks is meant as a warning to anyone stupid enough to get in the way.

There is also the puzzle of the turn signal. A blinking left indicator can mean the driver is about to make a left turn, or it can mean he is about to make a right turn or no turn at all.

Understanding intractable questions like these is the secret to mastering the way of the Thai road.

while I commend you on an interesting and maybe insightful post I can't help but wonder why other buddhist contries such as Japan can master the art of giving way and stopping at traffic lights, I think the answer is more likely to be a lack of any real driving lessons or driving test to speak of or maybe even that Thais in general seem to be more selfish than most other countries I have spent any time in or dare I say it it could even be an I.Q problem........ I really don't think the poor driving has much to do with buddhism though but I am as likely to be wrong as I am right an still very interested in your view of it.

[Roj]

If I`m going on a long trip I let the train take the strain. Compared to a bus it`s a really pleasant way to cover a lot of miles. Long distance bus drivers are overworked and underpaid.

[Able]

Sad, but all too common here. Thailand is a great country, but third world in many ways

Well said

[OZEMADE]

I feel sorry for the people that died and the heart ache it has now bought to their families. I have no sympathy for the driver who was killed, as there is no excuse for him to go to sleep behind the wheel knowing he is in charge of the safety and security of the passengers. I also blame the company that own the bus for not having 2 drivers on long trips to rotate during the trip. I also blame the Road Traffic Authority for not pulling busses over and checking their driving times and breaks in their log books if there is such a book. There is no reason what so ever, for those lives to be lost. There are to many bus crashes and lives lost all over Thailand. Inexcusable.

[antsrule]

Until the Thai mindset changes these accidents will remain an inevitable fact of life. Drivers are licensed with the minimum training (if any). Road rules are rarely if ever enforced. Buses tailgaiting at ridiculous speeds and undertaking on the left side are all too common

And greedy unscrupulous owners push underpaid drivers beyond their physical limits.

But hey - mai pen rai -- isnt it always

I just got back to Canada and was reminded of something I forgot about. Riding with a Canadian bus driver is like riding with an airline pilot. However, the Thai busdrivers deserve a lot of praise from my perspective. They can drive very well in situations that are very unpredictable, like other Thai drivers. It really does impress me how Thai bus drivers can move so effortlessly through heavy Bangkok traffic.

The big differences between Thai and Canadian drivers are training, customer safety and equipment safety! But we are lucky in Canada that all of us who drive must be trained to basic standards. It gets rid of a lot of unpredictability the Thai bus drivers must contend with.

What to do? Wow, really big problem. Even if Thai law turned around today forcing new drivers to meet new standards, it would be years before the carnage was reduced.

[mca]

It really does impress me how Thai bus drivers can move so effortlessly through heavy Bangkok traffic.

It's quite easy when you don't have any brakes.....

[jackr]

I just relayed this news to my wife, her response 'Don't worry, it's not your family'?

That doesn't surprise me. It's that sort of selfish mindset from your missus and the masses in general that will see this type of thing continue. Morbid.

[chooka]

Until the Thai mindset changes these accidents will remain an inevitable fact of life. Drivers are licensed with the minimum training (if any). Road rules are rarely if ever enforced. Buses tailgaiting at ridiculous speeds and undertaking on the left side are all too common

And greedy unscrupulous owners push underpaid drivers beyond their physical limits.

But hey - mai pen rai -- isnt it always

I just got back to Canada and was reminded of something I forgot about. Riding with a Canadian bus driver is like riding with an airline pilot. However, the Thai busdrivers deserve a lot of praise from my perspective. They can drive very well in situations that are very unpredictable, like other Thai drivers. It really does impress me how Thai bus drivers can move so effortlessly through heavy Bangkok traffic.

The big differences between Thai and Canadian drivers are training, customer safety and equipment safety! But we are lucky in Canada that all of us who drive must be trained to basic standards. It gets rid of a lot of unpredictability the Thai bus drivers must contend with.

What to do? Wow, really big problem. Even if Thai law turned around today forcing new drivers to meet new standards, it would be years before the carnage was reduced.

"Even if Thai law turned around today forcing new drivers to meet new standards, it would be years before the carnage was reduced."

That's quite true it will take a few years but when do we start, Yesterday, today or tomorrow? If they started yesterday it may take another 2 yrs, start today 3 yrs or start tomorrow 4 yrs.