GPS Devices In Public Transport Might Cut Road Deaths: Thai Minister

[surangw]

One more thing to distract the drivers?

[gregb]

I'm not given to commenting often at the frequent statements attributed to government officials because I think that often the reporters are at fault.

I have had to read the Nation report several times before understanding that the study is into installing GPS 'tracker' units into public service vehicles (buses and mini-buses) so that their movements can be tracked by the authorities and monitor speed limit compliance. This implies a central computer control and reporting system to identify individual vehicles exceeding limits.

Like the one tablet per child scheme; it's just a dream.

Not necessary to read it several times to understand that knowing how fast a vehicle has traveled is more likely to earn a bonus and that GPS is no deterrent to speeding. Only engine governors that limit vehicle speed can deter speeding by making it impossible, except maybe downhill with a tailwind.

The key issue here is whether or not there will be enforcement taken against drivers who speed. I suspect that there will be, at least for those who don't have connections. And let's face it, most of these drivers are not hi so type people. They are poor and know they will be hung out to dry. Given this understanding that they will likely be subject to the rules and that a computer can not be bribed or corrupted, then we can look at other studies in Western countries for an idea of what might happen.

Before we get into that though, we should realize that there is no real reason to do this with a GPS. A simple black box data recorder connected to the vehicle's speedometer cable is more than sufficient to obtain the same result, and probably a quarter of the cost. Of course, that kind of practical thinking probably wouldn't net nearly as much corruption money for the government minister who signs this as requiring an expensive GPS system would, but we'll just ignore that inconvenient detail for the moment.

So what happens when you take people who previously were unmonitored and suddenly add a monitoring system for their driving behavior? Well, we can look at some real world examples. Take this article from Forbes:

http://www.forbes.co.../084_print.html

It isn't only that black boxes can make cars safer. They can also make safer drivers. The Berlin highway safety administration found that after the city's police department started using data recorders in their patrol cars, damage during rescue trips fell by 36%. Also in Germany, a taxi company installed these boxes in its fleet and collision rates fell by 66%. In the U.S., Sunstar Emergency Medical Services found that black boxes reduced its ambulance accidents by 95%. If there were a drug as effective in saving lives, people would be clamoring outside the Food & Drug Administration for its approval.

The key here is the psychological connection of "If I cause a problem, and they check that computer and find out it is my fault, I'm going to lose my job or worse." If that fear is there, then the monitoring devices are effective. People will modify their behavior. So the real question is, in Thailand, would that fear be present in the drivers? My guess is it probably would, because they are poor working stiffs without any real clout.

That doesn't mean nobody would ever drive drunk or pumped up on amphetamines, but it would happen less if people realized that there was an independent computer system that was always watching and that would absolutely report them immediately for doing dangerous things. The private operators would also modify their incentives to drivers, as once that raw data is out, and they couldn't simply bribe an officer to say that the accident was someone else's fault.

Monitoring devices change all the rules, and when the rules change, people do modify their behavior. So aside from the fact that they are taking about GPS trackers rather than much cheaper and equally effective black boxes, I would definitely support this policy.

[hhiser]

Amazing Thailand! Why not start with mandatory driver's education, stricter licensing requirements (especially for operators of public transportation and truck drivers!), and enforcement of traffic laws.

[blackthorn2005]

http://www.bbc.com/n...nology-18349499 Hmm a very revealing comparison .

Thanks for posting this informative article. One would assume that putting a GPS device in a Thai vehicle with a Thai driver would only add to the road death count by adding this distraction.

You mean it could get worse? Is that possible?

Just one more distraction to add to the 2 mobile phones and Blackberry they will be jugging with while they are driving.

[Arkady]

What can you expect from a ministry where the permanent secretary allegedly accumulated a billion baht that he stored in his bedroom and claimed that he earned it from moonlighting for private companies in his free time?

[Cardiff1963]

Hope it works, I don,t think it will distract the drivers as bus drivers probably know the route (pronounced root). I think from the article it is to crack down on speeding which can't be a bad idea