petedk Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I see today that there is another tragic bus accident. The bus driver lost control but why did he lose control? Was it because he was dosing off or didn't know the road? What would you do if you saw the driver falling asleep? I ask because this has happened to me on the last two trips to Pattaya. As soon as we hit the highway out of Pattaya the companion of the driver pulled a jacket over her head and went to sleep. Within ten minutes I noticed the bus slowly changing lanes and when I looked i saw the driver's eyes were closed. I said to my Thai friend that I should say something to the driver but I was told just to sit tight and not say anything. Several times on that journey the bus slowed right down as the driver dozed off. I swore never to take the bus again but a month later (last week) I went to Pattaya again and exactly the same story. Normally I wouldn't notice but on both of these journeys I sat at the front. On the last journey I coughed loudly every time I saw the driver dosing off and I mentioned to the other passengers (Thais) that he was sleeping. They didn't seem to care. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giddyup Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) You're either a thrillseeker who loves to live on the edge or just plain crazy. Who in their right mind could be a passenger in a vehicle with the driver asleep at the wheel? Edited December 12, 2012 by giddyup Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HeijoshinCool Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Had the same experience at least a half dozen times. Only thing I know of to do, and which I immediately did, was to get off the bus and wait for the next one. Even in the middle of nowhere. Why worry about what others think about you? Oh, and never, never, ride after dark. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinfoilhat Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 you simply wont catch me on a bus. the terror has no limits. end of. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giddyup Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 you simply wont catch me on a bus. the terror has no limits. end of. I haven't had great experiences with mini bus drivers, but the big bus companies like Bells and the one's that go from Pattaya to Ekamai seem to be OK. What other choice do you have unless you take a taxi or drive yourself and have the hassle of parking in BKK? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinfoilhat Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) fly, taxi, drive, private minivan. the bus is a false economy if you wake up dead Edited December 12, 2012 by tinfoilhat 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giddyup Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 fly, taxi, drive, private minivan. the bus is a false economy if you wake up dead It sounds as though the OP was in a mini van and I'm not sure a taxi would be necessarily any safer. How do you fly from Pattaya to BKK. Ultralight? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinfoilhat Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 a taxi is considerably safer. you can sit next to the driver (if you really feel you need to), give him a smack if he falls asleep or tell him to slow the fark down should you wish to. Same with a private minivan. I have encountered or witnessed far to many bus accidents in thailand, and been privy to so much insanity just watching buses on the road to ever let myself or family under take a long haul. as for pattaya, i have no occasion to willingly go there, but when i do HAVE to it is a taxi or drive. 1600 thb from my door in Bkk on lower Sukhumvit. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giddyup Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 a taxi is considerably safer. you can sit next to the driver (if you really feel you need to), give him a smack if he falls asleep or tell him to slow the fark down should you wish to. Same with a private minivan. I have encountered or witnessed far to many bus accidents in thailand, and been privy to so much insanity just watching buses on the road to ever let myself or family under take a long haul. as for pattaya, i have no occasion to willingly go there, but when i do HAVE to it is a taxi or drive. 1600 thb from my door in Bkk on lower Sukhumvit. It's all a high risk venture just being on the road here. Sure you can minimise the risks to some degree, but you just can't protect yourself from the lunatic fringe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arthurwait Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) The transport companies pay the bib to operate the routes and once they have done that they are left alone and the drivers know it. Pretty much all country lads who have been brought up with the culture of drinking 24/7. This is why they fall asleep. Edited December 12, 2012 by arthurwait Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krisb Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Blether wouldnt bes suprised to hear this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brewsterbudgen Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 you simply wont catch me on a bus. the terror has no limits. end of. I haven't had great experiences with mini bus drivers, but the big bus companies like Bells and the one's that go from Pattaya to Ekamai seem to be OK. What other choice do you have unless you take a taxi or drive yourself and have the hassle of parking in BKK? I take the Ekkamai - Pattaya bus every 2 weeks or so and it's always got me there safely. I'm not saying drivers are perfect, but the ones on this route seem fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hedghog Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Been on a bus once,enough. One time to many Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brewsterbudgen Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Been on a bus once,enough. One time to many If you do it every 2 weeks you get used to it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scully Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 A couple of years ago took a short bus journey out in the sticks over a quite mountainous region. The driver overtook on blind bends, screeched around corners and must have been off his head on something. Looking around the bus there was genuine fear on peoples faces, after that I always study the driver to make sure he's not off his box. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petedk Posted December 12, 2012 Author Share Posted December 12, 2012 (edited) Well both my trips were on the Ekamai - Pattaya route..not in a van . It's not too long ago one of these crashed into a pillar on Bang Na Trad road , killing the driver. How can you get off a bus on the Bang Na Trad tollway? Who will stop for you? I have travelled by van to remote areas of Sattahip and yes I always try to sit next to the driver. I would say 80% of them fight to stay awake. I always had sweets to give them and tried to talk to them. I have also taken taxis to Chonburi, Sri Ratcha with sleepy drivers but again I was able to talk to them. Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect App Edited December 12, 2012 by petedk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scorecard Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Where possible take Nakorn Chai Air (NCA) buses, they have 2 drivers on board and thery change regularly. NCA is very safety conscious and very service conscious. I've also heard they have a 'secret shopper' crew who takes buses regularly to check the service and safety levels. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mickjn Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I have been from Uttraditt many times.When they settle down the hostess gets in the front with the driver.I have also seen them change drivers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rene123 Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 . How do you fly from Pattaya to BKK. Ultralight? Some of us are just angels and we fly ourselves. I've taken many busses in Thailand and the driver was always awake. But maybe I've just been lucky. I don't trust mini-vans, though, and I hate them on the highway when I'm riding my scooter. They act like I should always get out of the way even if there is no place for me to go. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Banzai99 Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Pretty much all country lads who have been brought up with the culture of drinking 24/7. So they're mostly English ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiangmaikelly Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Well both my trips were on the Ekamai - Pattaya route..not in a van . It's not too long ago one of these crashed into a pillar on Bang Na Trad road , killing the driver. How can you get off a bus on the Bang Na Trad tollway? Who will stop for you? I have travelled by van to remote areas of Sattahip and yes I always try to sit next to the driver. I would say 80% of them fight to stay awake. I always had sweets to give them and tried to talk to them. I have also taken taxis to Chonburi, Sri Ratcha with sleepy drivers but again I was able to talk to them. Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect App What is a remote area of Sattahip? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rancid Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 I have refused now both my children to go on longer distance bus trips, both times the reason cited was drivers untrained and unskilled and buses with low maintenance, the kids are not happy as all their friends are going. And yes in all likeihood it would be OK but I have seen these clowns on the open road and I do not trust them and will not take excessive risk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petedk Posted December 12, 2012 Author Share Posted December 12, 2012 Well both my trips were on the Ekamai - Pattaya route..not in a van . It's not too long ago one of these crashed into a pillar on Bang Na Trad road , killing the driver. How can you get off a bus on the Bang Na Trad tollway? Who will stop for you? I have travelled by van to remote areas of Sattahip and yes I always try to sit next to the driver. I would say 80% of them fight to stay awake. I always had sweets to give them and tried to talk to them. I have also taken taxis to Chonburi, Sri Ratcha with sleepy drivers but again I was able to talk to them. Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect App What is a remote area of Sattahip? Many villages from Bowin and to Sattahip. Irrelevant really but these places don't have a regular bus service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petedk Posted December 12, 2012 Author Share Posted December 12, 2012 I have refused now both my children to go on longer distance bus trips, both times the reason cited was drivers untrained and unskilled and buses with low maintenance, the kids are not happy as all their friends are going. And yes in all likeihood it would be OK but I have seen these clowns on the open road and I do not trust them and will not take excessive risk. Yes, that is another problem... poor maintenance. Been on several buses that have broken down and had to wait for a relief bus or the next one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chiangmaikelly Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Well both my trips were on the Ekamai - Pattaya route..not in a van . It's not too long ago one of these crashed into a pillar on Bang Na Trad road , killing the driver. How can you get off a bus on the Bang Na Trad tollway? Who will stop for you? I have travelled by van to remote areas of Sattahip and yes I always try to sit next to the driver. I would say 80% of them fight to stay awake. I always had sweets to give them and tried to talk to them. I have also taken taxis to Chonburi, Sri Ratcha with sleepy drivers but again I was able to talk to them. Sent from my GT-I9100 using Thaivisa Connect App What is a remote area of Sattahip? Many villages from Bowin and to Sattahip. Irrelevant really but these places don't have a regular bus service. Vans only travel on Sukhumvit road in the Sattahip area as far as I know. I don't know how you get to sit next to the driver because they always tell me where to sit and only good looking women get next to the driver. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trainman34014 Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Where possible take Nakorn Chai Air (NCA) buses, they have 2 drivers on board and thery change regularly. NCA is very safety conscious and very service conscious. I've also heard they have a 'secret shopper' crew who takes buses regularly to check the service and safety levels. Well said; they are the only Bus company I will travel with. If they don't go there....nor do I ! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinfoilhat Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 a taxi is considerably safer. you can sit next to the driver (if you really feel you need to), give him a smack if he falls asleep or tell him to slow the fark down should you wish to. Same with a private minivan. I have encountered or witnessed far to many bus accidents in thailand, and been privy to so much insanity just watching buses on the road to ever let myself or family under take a long haul. as for pattaya, i have no occasion to willingly go there, but when i do HAVE to it is a taxi or drive. 1600 thb from my door in Bkk on lower Sukhumvit. It's all a high risk venture just being on the road here. Sure you can minimise the risks to some degree, but you just can't protect yourself from the lunatic fringe. indeed. you need not trust them to drive you either. being on the road is not that great a risk. you pick your route, you pick your time, you pick your driver, or you do it yourself. risk minimised. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dancealot Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 Agreed on all. I am always minimizing risk by using my fist rule: Always minimize road contact, everywhere. But if you have to go, you HAVE to go out there... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kipperthai Posted December 12, 2012 Share Posted December 12, 2012 LMAO & most of you say you live in Thailand. Whinging gits if nowt else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
giddyup Posted December 13, 2012 Share Posted December 13, 2012 LMAO & most of you say you live in Thailand. Whinging gits if nowt else. Facts are facts, doesn't make anyone a whinger for stating them. Does make you a bit of a non-contributor though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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