Are Pedestrians "Immuned" From Accidents In Pattaya?

[toenail]

The motor bike accident discussion on another forum makes me wonder if the local news chooses to not report pedestrians that get knocked over/ or runned over by cars or motor bikes? Whenever I am walking around Pattaya, crossing a soi or street, if I am not cautious I could easily get clipped by a motorbike or car (turning a corner) or when crossing a street (when it is all clear) a motor bike happens to be going the wrong way and I almost get runned over. I keep thinking how the innocent tourist could easily get hurn in the city of "no rules".

[PattayaParent]

If the local newspapers reported every accident each issue would be be thicker than the Encyclopaedia Britannica.

[highchol]

If the local newspapers reported every accident each issue would be be thicker than the Encyclopaedia Britannica.

yep, thick brits and accidents

[petercool]

It is practice in Thailand, if not exactly the law, that any vehicle must take care to avoid pedestrians and in an accident the vehicle would be blamed regardless of any negligence by the pedestrian. In turn, pedestrians are supposed to use pedestrian crossings but enforcement would take all the policemen in Thailand doing little else.

It is a fact of life here that visitor pedestrians act as they might at home where licenced drivers are generally better at stopping for them. Plus it is also a fact that Thai drivers are not so alert or willing to give way to pedestrians and pass less stringent driving tests.

Moral is for both pedestrians and drivers to be particularly careful in Thailand and even more so on Beach Road, Pattaya.

[rinteln]

Sorry to say but it would probably come down to whether the pedestrian in question was a farang or a Thai. The unwritten rules I suppose are whoever has the money will be in the wrong. So most likely the farang.

Negative but realistic im afraid.

Just take a look at a typical zebra crossing any day of the week and look how annoyed Thais get when they have to stop at the crossing when there is a clear red light. Stupid farangs they shout. I mean fancy trying to cross a road safely.

Edited March 9, 2012 by rinteln

[sunshinegirl]

There is nowhere worse for crossing a road just now than Jomtien Second road. It is a nightmare. Both Thais and Farangs are at it, to blinking lazy to drive to the u turn . They have blocked 2 u turns and its like whacky races at the market area. They are all driving up the wrong side of the road and on the pavement. Accident waiting to happen.

[petercool]

Rintein, I beg to differ.

I have seen a situation where a farang pedestrian was hit by a Thai motorbike rider and the rider was fined (500 baht) with the farang just warned about being careful of Thai traffic.

Edited March 9, 2012 by petercool

[rinteln]

Rintein, I beg to differ.

I have seen a situation where a farang pedestrian was hit by a Thai motorbike rider and the rider was fined (500 baht) with the farang just warned about being careful of Thai traffic.

Oh ofcourse, I agree. There will always be exceptions but in general the farang will be blamed where possible (which is most times), unless its so obvious ! If there were 100 accidents this week with Thais and farangs then I bet at least 70% will be blamed on the farang without much investigation at all. Arrest the Thai and you are more unlikely to get the money, have loads of paperwork and have to lock him/her up. Arrest the farang and he/she will pay straight away.

To the police in Pattaya an accident is an opportunity for money. So who is likely to have more of it and more likely to part with it at short notice. The Farang !! In my opinion its as simple as that. Just like if there are 2 motorbikes approaching a stop point, 1 with a farang wearing a hat and one with a Thai not wearing a hat, they will still stop the farang. Why, more chance of money.

In my opinion this theory carries over into accidents hence my original answer. There are exceptions, but not many.

Edited March 9, 2012 by rinteln

[tropo]

In turn, pedestrians are supposed to use pedestrian crossings but enforcement would take all the policemen in Thailand doing little else.

Really? There are no pedestrian crossings in Pattaya. They tried, but failed miserably. I can no longer stop at the pedestrian lights as I'll get rear ended if I try.

The majority of tourists are from right hand drive countries so they often drive on the wrong side here and I often have to beep tourists looking the wrong way when they are crossing the road.

Edited March 9, 2012 by tropo

[swisstouristpattaya]

right,russia drive on right?

[brewsterbudgen]

In turn, pedestrians are supposed to use pedestrian crossings but enforcement would take all the policemen in Thailand doing little else.

Really? There are no pedestrian crossings in Pattaya. They tried, but failed miserably. I can no longer stop at the pedestrian lights as I'll get rear ended if I try.

The majority of tourists are from right hand drive countries so they often drive on the wrong side here and I often have to beep tourists looking the wrong way when they are crossing the road.

When they're turned on the pedestrian crossing lights work quite well. Traffic will stop although it pays to proceed cautiously and "eyeball" the drivers. A definite improvement although why they are not always turned on I have no idea.

[Gone]

Rintein, I beg to differ.

I have seen a situation where a farang pedestrian was hit by a Thai motorbike rider and the rider was fined (500 baht) with the farang just warned about being careful of Thai traffic.

Oh ofcourse, I agree. There will always be exceptions but in general the farang will be blamed where possible (which is most times), unless its so obvious ! If there were 100 accidents this week with Thais and farangs then I bet at least 70% will be blamed on the farang without much investigation at all. Arrest the Thai and you are more unlikely to get the money, have loads of paperwork and have to lock him/her up. Arrest the farang and he/she will pay straight away.

To the police in Pattaya an accident is an opportunity for money. So who is likely to have more of it and more likely to part with it at short notice. The Farang !! In my opinion its as simple as that. Just like if there are 2 motorbikes approaching a stop point, 1 with a farang wearing a hat and one with a Thai not wearing a hat, they will still stop the farang. Why, more chance of money.

In my opinion this theory carries over into accidents hence my original answer. There are exceptions, but not many.

You have been reading to many TV posts. I think this attitude that farangs are always blames is a load of rubbish. I find it to be the same to each person. If you are doing something wrong you will be in trouble. if you are not then you have no worries.

Yes of course you have to be careful crossing a road no matter where you are and especially here in LOS.

[tropo]

When they're turned on the pedestrian crossing lights work quite well. Traffic will stop although it pays to proceed cautiously and "eyeball" the drivers. A definite improvement although why they are not always turned on I have no idea.

You must be living in some parallel universe, because in the Pattaya where I live hardly anyone stops at these lights. They're a danger to tourists because they're lulled into a false sense of security, believing cars will stop.

Edited March 9, 2012 by tropo

[dean999]

I thought you were safe, as long as you just walk out into traffic with your hand up to the on-coming cars. I have seen lots of Falang doing this and the cars always stop or miss them. Works best if you've had a couple of chang and then you can stop anything.

[rinteln]

Rintein, I beg to differ.

I have seen a situation where a farang pedestrian was hit by a Thai motorbike rider and the rider was fined (500 baht) with the farang just warned about being careful of Thai traffic.

Oh ofcourse, I agree. There will always be exceptions but in general the farang will be blamed where possible (which is most times), unless its so obvious ! If there were 100 accidents this week with Thais and farangs then I bet at least 70% will be blamed on the farang without much investigation at all. Arrest the Thai and you are more unlikely to get the money, have loads of paperwork and have to lock him/her up. Arrest the farang and he/she will pay straight away.

To the police in Pattaya an accident is an opportunity for money. So who is likely to have more of it and more likely to part with it at short notice. The Farang !! In my opinion its as simple as that. Just like if there are 2 motorbikes approaching a stop point, 1 with a farang wearing a hat and one with a Thai not wearing a hat, they will still stop the farang. Why, more chance of money.

In my opinion this theory carries over into accidents hence my original answer. There are exceptions, but not many.

You have been reading to many TV posts. I think this attitude that farangs are always blames is a load of rubbish. I find it to be the same to each person. If you are doing something wrong you will be in trouble. if you are not then you have no worries.

Yes of course you have to be careful crossing a road no matter where you are and especially here in LOS.

No, funny enough what I said earlier was actually my own opinion and not a result of other TV posts.

"I think this attitude that farangs are always blames is a load of rubbish"

Oh dear.

Edited March 9, 2012 by rinteln

[Scabo]

I agree with Tropo#9,

Every weekday morning around 5ish I make my way down 3rd Rd from Central

to Tony's.

At least 2-3 times a week you see other farangs oblivious to their surroundings

walking out the wrong way into traffic or riding up side soi's the wrong way.

I always put it down to them being drunk/coming from from right side of the road

countries.

[thenervoussurgeon]

Trouble is tourists here in Pattaya think that as they are on holiday rules do not apply to them so they just walk in the road and generally get in everybodys way ,

[tropo]

I agree with Tropo#9,

Every weekday morning around 5ish I make my way down 3rd Rd from Central

to Tony's.

At least 2-3 times a week you see other farangs oblivious to their surroundings

walking out the wrong way into traffic or riding up side soi's the wrong way.

I always put it down to them being drunk/coming from from right side of the road

countries.

Yes, that's when I usually have Farangs coming straight for me on the wrong side - early hours of the morning. When there is no traffic to follow they instinctively go to "their" side. It's easy to do even when sober if you've just started riding/driving on the "wrong" side. I have to be careful myself when I holiday in Philippines.

[SidJames]

I got clipped by a motor bike taxi this evening on Pattaya Tai by the market.

I was crossing Hollywood soi, looked right then left & stepped into the street then bamm.

I was fine but the driver looked seriously pissed off.

The 2 young girls on the back without helmets kept saying sorry & asked how I was.

They were stunners & it's only now I wish I asked were they were off to as I should have played the sympathy card (& you don't get many of them in a deck of Pattaya playing cards)

Anyway I've attached a pic of how things might have turned out if I was little bit quicker off the mark

[mindabenda]

I got clipped by a motor bike taxi this evening on Pattaya Tai by the market.

I was crossing Hollywood soi, looked right then left & stepped into the street then bamm.

I was fine but the driver looked seriously pissed off.

The 2 young girls on the back without helmets kept saying sorry & asked how I was.

They were stunners & it's only now I wish I asked were they were off to as I should have played the sympathy card (& you don't get many of them in a deck of Pattaya playing cards)

Anyway I've attached a pic of how things might have turned out if I was little bit quicker off the mark

Sid, Sid, Sid, hindsight is 20/20? I didn't see the pics but I hope you caressed the throats.

[KeyserSoze01]

Trouble is tourists here in Pattaya think that as they are on holiday rules do not apply to them so they just walk in the road and generally get in everybodys way ,

Or they come from countries where pedestrians have the right of way over vehicles. Silly farang, only takes one close call before they learn -or- get run over by a motocy.

[tropo]

Or they come from countries where pedestrians have the right of way over vehicles. Silly farang, only takes one close call before they learn -or- get run over by a motocy.

True.... I've been given the evil eye (and sometimes mouth) many times by tourists who think they have the right of way as soon as they step onto the road... and especially when they are using zebra crossings. They have a point, but all I'm doing is following Thai road protocol.

Edited March 10, 2012 by tropo

[lovetotravel]

Sorry to say but it would probably come down to whether the pedestrian in question was a farang or a Thai. The unwritten rules I suppose are whoever has the money will be in the wrong. So most likely the farang.

Negative but realistic im afraid.

Just take a look at a typical zebra crossing any day of the week and look how annoyed Thais get when they have to stop at the crossing when there is a clear red light. Stupid farangs they shout. I mean fancy trying to cross a road safely.

It's not just Thais that get annoyed. Farangs drive right through them even if the light is red and you're 1/2 across. Lack of police enforcement is the big problem.

[Langsuan Man]

The police in Pattaya even drive right through the red lights at the crossings.

If the cops do it, is there any hope that other drivers will obey them, I think not

[brewsterbudgen]

When they're turned on the pedestrian crossing lights work quite well. Traffic will stop although it pays to proceed cautiously and "eyeball" the drivers. A definite improvement although why they are not always turned on I have no idea.

You must be living in some parallel universe, because in the Pattaya where I live hardly anyone stops at these lights. They're a danger to tourists because they're lulled into a false sense of security, believing cars will stop.

The lights on 2nd Road, near Central Festival work fairly well. The cars certainly stop for me, although I always proceed with caution. Like I say, they're better than nothing.

[rinteln]

Sorry to say but it would probably come down to whether the pedestrian in question was a farang or a Thai. The unwritten rules I suppose are whoever has the money will be in the wrong. So most likely the farang.

Negative but realistic im afraid.

Just take a look at a typical zebra crossing any day of the week and look how annoyed Thais get when they have to stop at the crossing when there is a clear red light. Stupid farangs they shout. I mean fancy trying to cross a road safely.

It's not just Thais that get annoyed. Farangs drive right through them even if the light is red and you're 1/2 across. Lack of police enforcement is the big problem.

Well in that case its Christmas come early for the police if its a farang running over another farang. I'm sure the police could swing it so somehow they could both be in the wrong...lol

In my eyes there are 3 problems with the crossings :

1. Thais aren't used to stopping on a straight line in regards to lights, they are only used to lights at junctions

2. The job of enforcement would be REAL police work, hard work and probably not much extra cash in it so Pattaya police wont be interested in that

3. Farangs ARE used to crossing zebras safely in their home countries so they will use them without much thought

Result

Loads of tourists crossing the road thinking its business as usual with loads of Thais thinking the tourists are just walking into the road stupidly and all with no enforcement.

Edited March 11, 2012 by rinteln

[tropo]

The lights on 2nd Road, near Central Festival work fairly well. The cars certainly stop for me, although I always proceed with caution. Like I say, they're better than nothing.

I don't see a grey area with these pedestrian lights. They either work very well or they are a danger to pedestrians. "Fairly well" just doesn't cut it. Most cars, buses, trucks and motorbikes totally ignore them these days. I had to stop waiting at them as it had become too much of a danger to me. Apart from the obvious danger of being rear-ended the traffic becomes very angry if I get in their way. You don't need angry traffic behind you when you're on a bike.

Edited March 11, 2012 by tropo

[Ohio]

I find it safer crossing the road in Saigon without a crossing than the ones in Pattaya even when the lights are on.

BUT in over 25+ years coming here NEVER been hit...................

[gmac]

I find it safer crossing the road in Saigon without a crossing than the ones in Pattaya even when the lights are on.

BUT in over 25+ years coming here NEVER been hit...................

Foolish, very foolish. I'd stay in bed tomorrow if I were you. Talk about tempting fate!

[manxninja]

When i stay in Pattaya i get the biggest bike i can lay my hands on . last time a cbr 600. I dont have a liscence and the biggest i rode before was a 125 moped.

Its the city of madness leave your brain at the airport and pick it up again at departures.

Its madness on the road my mate got pulled over driving after at least ten pints and fined 200 baht, until the poice change their attitude the

roads will stay insane.