Cops, Drivers At Odds On Rush-Hour Checkpoints: Bangkok

[MikeOboe57]

Was in Bangkok last week, TGF driving car and pulled over for NOTHING, just having a Chonburi plate. Cop turned his nose up at 200 Baht and insisted on 500! We were just leaving BK so paid up. She was in a foul mood all the way back to Pattaya calling this cop everything under the sun as she knew she had done nothing wrong. You don't need a checkpoint to extort drivers!

The THB 500 were the fine for trying to bribe the cop with a measly THB 200. As a rule of thumb you should calculate THB 100 per row of medals on the guy's chest.

Back on topic: Why did you pay in the first place if your GF had done NOTHING wrong? Why not ask for a ticket?

[dude007]

"policemen cry foul that it will make it more difficult for them to carry out their duty to prevent crime."

whooaaaaaaaah!

[remobb]

I have been pulled for no offence at all. Mostly they look and say falang then wave me on. I would rather give 100baht than get a ticket (if I did something wrong) as it is more expensive and time wasting.

Have you ever rode a M/C in London? They are stopped all the time and in most cases bikes are given a full check over. just a leaky fork and it's a ticket, check mot and license plus insurance. What's better 100baht or an expensive ticket. Yeh it's a pain but I prefer this than the ticket.

[naboo]

If the police were to stand at any intersection in Bangkok in peak hours, they could make as much money collecting off people who drive into the intersection before the exit is clear, thus causing gridlock.

This would pay for the mia noi's house and punish the people who cause so much of Bangkok's gridlock.

Then, once they've solved this issue, they can move onto the vehicles that don't stop behind the line. Then the ones not using an indicator, or in the wrong lane. Then the helmets as the bikes are lined up at the lights, and by this point, everyone will have forgotten you can't stop in the middle of an intersection and so the cycle starts again.

No need to set up a checkpoint, there are so many violations happening 100% of the time at traffic lights that the police won't even need to be paid anymore.

[Sayonarax]

All checkpoints should be under constant surveillance cams sent directly into a public police website. A check on the checkers may bring about some logical solutions.

Some are minus the live feed of course.

[Yo Sup]

It's disgraceful that everyone openly discusses how the police use checkpoints as a money making grab. It's shameful for Thailand and makes them a laughing stock that it is so open and pervasively a part of Thai society.

Another poster suggested that working camera surveillance monitored by a command center that was honest would catch some of the police checkers.

This reminds me of the film Goodfellas where the opening dialog has DeNiro stating that in Las Vegas everyone is watching someone. The players are watching the dealers, the dealers are watching the players, the pit bosses are watching the dealers, and the section managers are watching the pit bosses, and the floor manager is watching the section bosses, and the casino manager is watching the floor manager and the operations manager is watching the casino manager and the eye in the sky is watching everyone. As the camera pans to the command center above the ceiling.

Thailand applies this technique but with a different motive. In Las Vegas they are trying to inhibit stealing. In Thailand they are trying to maximize the distribution of the stealing.

Having been pinched for 12,000 baht in the last week by a school and a landlord, I could not agree with you more. Thailand's cultural mindset is, "screw anyone whenever you can, especially the foreigner's". How utterly unsophisticated and pathetic!

Until Thailand learns to curb it's own society ("yet" saving face) and stop being racist, it will always lose face and be the laughing stock of the world, be thought of as a whorehouse, a place for criminals to run, and for decent people to avoid! I got two and a wake up.