'Safety Boost' At Death Bend Not Working: Village Chief

[webfact]

'Safety boost' at death bend not working: Village chief

Phuket Gazette

Baan Kho En village chief Somnuek Patee explains that the speed bumps installed before the notorious curve are actually causing rear-end collisions among speeding motorists. Photo: Warisa Temram

PHUKET: -- The village headman of Baan Kho En has called for officials to install more safety features at the notorious “death bend” on Thepkrasattri Road where the small community resides in the north of Phuket.

Somnuek Patee made his plea on Thursday at a high-powered meeting held to review the slew of safety measures put in place on the lethal stretch of road. The new safety features were installed after a four-year-old boy and his aunt were killed in an accident at the site in November.

At the meeting, chaired by Phuket Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkaosuttirak, were Phuket Provincial Police Deputy Commander Peerayut Karajedee; Pramote Pirat, the deputy chief of the Highways Department Phuket office; San Chantawong, chief of the Department of the Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Phuket office; and Siripat Leeprasit, Chief Administrative Officer (Palad) of the Thalang District Office.

Not shy of the top-level bureaucrats before him, village chief Somneuk said, “I would like to ask the Highways Department to install more warning signs. The flexible plastic traffic poles [installed between the southbound lanes to slow drivers down] are not helping, as people still drive through there at high speed.”

The plastic poles were installed just a week after the November 21 accident, which prompted a mass protest by villagers who commandeered and shut down the southbound lanes heading toward Phuket Town.

Also installed immediately after the accident were three speed bumps a few hundred meters before the curve.

“The three big speed bumps [installed] have caused rear-end accidents, because people driving too fast hit the brakes when they see the speed bumps,” said Mr Somneuk.

“Sometimes when the cars following behind them – also travelling at high speed – can’t stop fast enough, so they hit the car in front,” he explained.

“So warning signs should be installed about 800 meters before the curve and the speed bumps should be made smaller. This will also help reduce the noise made by big trucks when they drive over them,” he added.

Highways Department Phuket Office deputy chief Pramote explained that his office had already installed concrete blocks along the left side of the left lane southbound to separate traffic heading toward Phuket Town from the slow-moving vehicles using the emergency shoulder along the curve.

“We have already installed concrete blocks along 310 meters of the road. We are now waiting to install the blocks along a further 90m around the curve,” Mr Pramote said.

“The delay is because we are waiting for delivery of the remaining blocks needed [to complete the job]” he added.

“We also want to install more plastic poles between the two southbound lanes so that they, too, separate the lanes for 400 meters,” he added.

Mr Pramote reiterated that his office had requested a budget of 7 million baht from the Ministry of Land Transportation to install more permanent safety features at the curve, including upgrading the road surface around the curve, installing brighter lights and installing a checkpoint a few hundred meters before the curve.

The new safety overhaul follows expenditure of 15 million baht on making the curve safer after another Baan Kho En villager was killed in the curve in 2006.

Source: http://www.phuketgaz...ticle12079.html

-- Phuket Gazette 2012-01-21

[thaiIand]

heres an idea, take away concrete roads from thais. dump them back on rocks and dirt with massive potholes and they'll be forced to drive at 5km/h

[wackysleet]

Thailand. You must have been to my village.

[slapout]

Speed bumps ahead, reduced speed ahead, dangerous curve ahead, cross traffic ahead, prepare for sudden stop signs , etc will probably have as much effect as the 'no parking' one way, traffic signals, flood area, high water signs, etc. that are ignored on a daly basis.

The dangerous/unmaintained road system is nothing new, granted there are new drivers added to the roads each day, but even those exposed to the roads daily cannot guess what many of the drivers are going to do next.

The entire road transport system, including users, may be the equalivant of playing russian roulette with 3 loaded chambers.

[Just1Voice]

Let's see, station 4-5 BiB at the curve with radar gun, and 1,000 baht "fines" for anyone speeding. THAT would be a sure cure.

[khaowong1]

I like Thailands answer. Make that section of road so bad they have to slow down. Something similar happened in my area, the road into town had some really bad potholes so that people were having to drive off the road into the ditch to get around them. The potholes were fixed about three months ago and we've had several really bad accidents since from speeding.

[thaiIand]

IF you know the area next to the new condos behind the stadium (close to central/tesco) people are going like massive maniacs in the mini curve where the road is too narrow even with the MASSIVE speedbumps.. then u get down on the road to bangkok hospital and theres so many massive potholes and speedbumps, people drive at 5km/h when the road is safe/large enough to go faster

[swerver]

This is not Phuket but it doesn't make any difference its the same all over Thailand.

Yesterday made 140-KM round trip to BKK on Royal Road 7 never did see a police car both ways.

This morning made 70-KM round trip on Royal Road 7 to Pattaya not a police car to be seen.

All I see is painted sighs in Thai showing a police figure and phone number(s). Whatevver these signs means? I asked Tais and not a one of them could explain what the signs mean. Some made the JOKE "If you want to give some money you can phone him and he will come to get it from you".

Its like all the other signs you see along the Thai Hiways, they don't mean a didly do to a Thai and not only Thais, a good many farangs also. Many of which who have their drivers license taken away for consistent moving vehicle violations by the courts in their own country.