Crash Kills Two Brits In Thailand

[renrut salohcin]

Thai driving test = a couple of laps in a car park whilst the examiner watches from a safe distance.

The real driving test: You fail the first time no matter how well you drive. The Land Transport Office offers you the license for 5000 baht. Got it from a friends Thai wife. She refused to pay and went round a second time, successfully.

On a tangential note, Thai's HATE confrontation or conflict, so keep talking until they give up. Be nice, but keep talking, and they will look for an easier target.

my wife done it 3 times, no success, then she paid the 500 baht,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and pick up her driver licens next day, easy Thailand!!!!

Hope she's proud of herself, you seem to be.

[Mosha]

Thai driving test = a couple of laps in a car park whilst the examiner watches from a safe distance.

2? I only did 1,

[T_Dog]

Bike-trek Brits die in crash

A BRITISH couple on a round-the-world cycling adventure have been killed in Thailand, it emerged yesterday.

Peter Root and Mary Thompson, both 34, were riding their bikes near the capital Bangkok when they were run over by a pick-up truck.

The couple, from Guernsey, were both talented artists and had set off on their global trip in July 2011.

They were in their 23rd country when the tragedy struck, having already cycled through Europe, the Middle East and China.

Mr Root’s devastated father Jerry yesterday described them as a “golden couple” who “loved life”.

Read more: http://www.thesun.co...l#ixzz2L98hG9n7

--The Sun 2013-02-17

Thanks for the update Lite Beer. Sad news indeed and condolences to the families. Thailand's highways and drivers are some of the most dangerous in the world. Edited February 17, 2013 by T_Dog

[twix38]

Now we have it. Not a car accident in sight - incorrect reporting, but good to have more detail - I wonder what happened to the pick-up driver?

both 34, were riding their bikes near the capital Bangkok when they were run over by a pick-up truck.

Edited February 17, 2013 by twix38

[dcutman]

Now we have it. Not a car accident in sight - incorrect reporting, but good to have more detail - I wonder what happened to the pick-up driver?

both 34, were riding their bikes near the capital Bangkok when they were run over by a pick-up truck.

In this particular tragedy, I myself do not want to know the details of these peoples demise. I can only hope the Thai Justice system gave their families closure. As you might know, they built a website of their travels for the last year and a half witch is pretty incredible. http://www.twoonfourwheels.com/ Edited February 17, 2013 by dcutman

[MaxYakov]

Does anyone find it unusual that the details of this particular accident seem to have been suppressed? The latest postings here allege that it occurred near Bangkok. Does anyone know their proposed itinerary? I have this suspicion that they attempted to approach Bangkok from the south on Sukumvit Road, which extends from Bangkok almost to Cambodia.

I considered once bicycling from Bangkok to Pattaya on Sukumvit and did a quick survey of the route using Google Maps. I quickly determined that it would be very risky for a bicyclist given the type of road and the potential speed of the traffic on it.

Edit: A little googling produced this article (snippet) from the BP:

The accident occurred on Friday at about 2.30pm when a pickup truck ran over Peter Root and Mary Thompson, both 34, while they were riding their bikes in Chachoengsao's Phanom Sarakham district.

The pickup truck driver told police that his vehicle hit the British couple while he was reaching down to pick up something.

So, scratch the Sukumvit Road hypothesis. They were, apparently about 50 Km northwest of Bangkok. They could have been on the 304. EOS - End Of Speculation.

Edited February 17, 2013 by MaxYakov

[webfact]

UPDATE:

UK cyclist couple killed in crash

The Nation

A British couple cycling around the world were killed in a crash in Thailand.

Peter Root and Mary Thompson, both 34, set off on a round-the-world adventure in July 2011 and had cycled through Europe, the Middle East and China.

The Guernsey couple is understood to have died in an accident on Thailand's notoriously lethal roads on Wednesday, The Telegraph reported.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said they were "aware of the deaths of two British nationals in Thailand on February 13" and were providing consular assistance.

On their website, Two on four wheels, the couple posted a travel journal, photographs and short films from the 23 countries they had visited.

Root was born in Jersey but grew up in Guernsey. Thompson was originally from Bristol. They met 14 years ago at an arts college in Falmouth, Cornwall.

-- The Nation 2013-02-18

[jko]

My God, I am deeply saddened to learn of this tragedy.

The fact that this couple had survived the obvious dangers of pedalling through many other countries only to suffer an undignified death under the wheels of a pick up truck in Thailand, apparently with some careless driver at the wheel, is sheer heart-wrenching irony.

It's so easy to say; 'This is Thailand' where it's nice to live, where authorities can be bribed, rules can be bent, laws can be flouted, and everything is conveniently sabai, including getting a driving licence, mainly through corruption and cronyism.

It's only when you see - and feel - a senseless loss of life such as this, even when the victims are not known to you, that anger replaces complacency.

My sincerest condolences go to their families and friends, who must be devastated, together with the hope that Thailand will one day wake up to its irresponsible and reprehensible record of death and injury happening on their roads, every single day.

I hope too. that this particularly tragic case might bring the government to its senses.

[Lite Beer]

British world cycle couple dead in Thai crash: police

BANGKOK, Feb 18, 2013 (AFP) - A British couple who were 18 months into a trip around the world by bicycle have been killed in a road accident in Thailand, police said Monday.

Mary Thompson and Peter Root from the British island of Guernsey had ridden across Europe and Central Asia, documenting their travels through countries including Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and China in film and on a blog.

Thai police said the pair, both in their mid thirties, were travelling along the hard shoulder of a main road in eastern Chachoengsao province on Wednesday when a pick-up truck veered out of its lane and hit them, police said.

"They were tourists who had travelled through several countries before reaching Thailand," local police lieutenant Chaiyong Butrwan told AFP.

He said the 25-year-old Thai driver, who was arrested at the scene, had reached down to pick up his hat from the floor of the truck causing the vehicle to swerve into the couple.

The British Embassy in Bangkok said it was aware of the deaths and that the families had been informed.

"Consular assistance is being provided," a spokeswoman said.

Thompson and Root, who entered Thailand earlier this month, had biked across 23 other countries since starting out from Guernsey on July 12, 2011, according to their blog www.twoonfourwheels.com.

The Thai driver was released on bail. Police said he faces charges of causing death by negligence, which carries a maximum sentence of ten years in prison, or a 20,000 baht ($670) fine or both.

-- (c) Copyright AFP 2013-02-18

[Neeranam]

Thai driving test = a couple of laps in a car park whilst the examiner watches from a safe distance.

The real driving test: You fail the first time no matter how well you drive. The Land Transport Office offers you the license for 5000 baht. Got it from a friends Thai wife. She refused to pay and went round a second time, successfully.

On a tangential note, Thai's HATE confrontation or conflict, so keep talking until they give up. Be nice, but keep talking, and they will look for an easier target.

This is nonsense - my Thai wife, for one, passed first time.

[Semper]

Thai driving test = a couple of laps in a car park whilst the examiner watches from a safe distance.

What I understand, they were bicycling. No need for a "Thai driving test".

Edited February 18, 2013 by Semper

[Payboy]

or a 20,000 baht ($670) fine

That'll teach him.

[nickjam]

This was in the BP yesterday. Driver said he reached down to get something and then hit them. He's got an excuse so all is fine and dandy, slap on the wrist for you sir

[rattler]

or a 20,000 baht ($670) fine

That'll teach him.

yeah maybe it was 20,000 baht he dropped! Nice to know Im probably only worth 10k then, Ill tell the wife, she'll be pleased!

[MESmith]

He said the 25-year-old Thai driver, who was arrested at the scene, had reached down to pick up his hat from the floor of the truck causing the vehicle to swerve into the couple.

I was driving my pickup today, after reading this statement. I thought about how it would be possible to pick something up from the floor of the truck, whilst driving. It wouldn't be. I wouldn't even attempt it. Did it not even enter the driver's mind to stop first? Why would he want to pick his hat up whilst driving? Or is he telling porkies?

[Lite Beer]

Topic Continues Here:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/620209-driver-in-british-cyclists-fatal-road-accident-released-on-bail/