Terror On The Highway

[thaibeachlovers]

Just back from a 5 hour night trip from the north to the rural countryside past Uttaradit. While most of the way is on minimum 2 lane each way superhighway, well signed and lots of reflectors, the old 2 way part between Lampang and the Uttaradit turn off leaves a lot to be desired. No roadside reflectors, faded lines etc.

The thing that freaked me out were the maniac drivers that just had to pass at high speed, despite there being no space to do so safely. My poor wife experienced "hearteshock" more than once as a speeding car came head on at us overtaking a 10 wheeler and trailer.

The sooner all the major roads in LOS are superhighways the better.

Then in the rural stretch, just after dawn, there were multitudinous multi passengered m'bikes trundling slowly down the middle of the lane, farm carts chugging along, dogs sleeping on the road ( I did see one flat dog ), and young boys speeding out of side roads without looking.

My wife was always telling me to be careful, because "they are crazy around here". She also did a lot of swearing at her countrymen.

My only surprise after doing the trip, is that the death toll in LOS isn't higher than it is. Defensive driving rules!

[stoneyboy]

Welcome to the real Thailand.

[thaibeachlovers]

Welcome to the real Thailand.

Yes indeed. It was always bus before, and I'm thinking in the future too.

I already told her I'm not driving to Chiang Mai again ( as reported in a previous thread ).

I went at 3 am to try and avoid the worst of the traffic, but the maniacs are still out there.

[HughJass]

there are worst places in the world to drive...try Mumbai in India

Edited March 8, 2013 by Tywais
Inappropriate photo removed

[mickjn]

Been a lot of very bad accidents up there

[weegee]

Your OP has just described my last venture by car.....makes you bum bite into the seat sometimes hey?

[rene123]

On a recent trip to Nan and back on my motorbike I had at least 4 or 5 separate incidents of vehicles coming at me in my lane on corners. However, I EXPECTED them to be there and made allowances for their reckless driving. But, on one particular incident I would have been in a head on accident had I been driving a car or truck. A van was passing a whole string of vehicles on a blind corner and there was no room for an other vehicle to get onto the narrow shoulder of the road and avoid a head on accident. On my motorbike I was just able to squeeze by the speeding van, but ONLY because I half expected someone passing on a blind corner and I adjusted my speed accordingly.

[transam]

Naaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah, normal drive in LOS.

[yourauntbob]

This topic has been beaten to death, Thai people are horrible drivers. To all those that compare them to India etc, just because there are worse places doesn't make Thai's any better.

[rookball]

they are not horrible drivers but actually excellent drivers with really poor etiquette.

[Banzai99]

Personally I find driving in Thailand easy, but I have been doing it since 1990, the biggest danger I find on the roads are arrogant Farangs who ain't got a clue how to drive here and expect everybody else to adapt to them, even though they don't know what the freek they are doing !

Problem is with most Farangs in Thailand, they are too old to adapt, they are set in their ways, too old to learn new ways, I think old Farangs should be banned from driving in Thailand.

[marstons]

making another trip from Pattaya to Udon next week, not looking forwards to it, 100% concentration for 8 hours, last time had to drive around a flat person at KK. At least now they use a white sheet to cover some bits up instead of the newspaper they used to use. Still amazing they do not close the road at least until the bodies taken away.

[yourauntbob]

they are not horrible drivers but actually excellent drivers with really poor etiquette.

that would be true if there were not so many tragic accidents. i am not talking about the fender benders or the occasional bad collision, i am talking about all the vans where people are trapped inside and burned alive, or the buses that are so mangled few survive, or the commonality of hitting pedestrians or cyclists. this is not due to etiquette which is admittedly part of the problem. this is due to the lack of training, education, or respect for the laws.

[Banzai99]

We are so lucky that Farangs never break the speed limits, and never ever drink and drive, thank god for small mercies.

ThaiVisa myth.

Fact is, in my experience, most Farangs drive like maniacs in Thailand, and most certainly do not worry about drinking and driving.

Edited March 8, 2013 by Banzai99

[Dancealot]

@TBL.

One of my laws applies here i think Dancealot law #15 = Never, but never, ever drive through the Thai countryside @night.

[Dancealot]

We are so lucky that Farangs never break the speed limits, and never ever drink and drive, thank god for small mercies.

ThaiVisa myth.

Fact is, in my experience, most Farangs drive like maniacs in Thailand, and most certainly do not worry about drinking and driving.

Let's not generalize, now, shall we...

[jackr]

We are so lucky that Farangs never break the speed limits, and never ever drink and drive, thank god for small mercies.

ThaiVisa myth.

Fact is, in my experience, most Farangs drive like maniacs in Thailand, and most certainly do not worry about drinking and driving.

Wind your head in. The thread is about local driving habits inducing 'terror'. Sure, there are bad farang drivers, but not acknowledging that 99.99999% are Thai makes you look a nonsensical tool.

[Banzai99]

We are so lucky that Farangs never break the speed limits, and never ever drink and drive, thank god for small mercies.

ThaiVisa myth.

Fact is, in my experience, most Farangs drive like maniacs in Thailand, and most certainly do not worry about drinking and driving.

Wind your head in. The thread is about local driving habits inducing 'terror'. Sure, there are bad farang drivers, but not acknowledging that 99.99999% are Thai makes you look a nonsensical tool.

Oh yeah, I forgot about The ThaiVisa mantra......

Thai bad, Farang good, Thai bad, Farang good, Thai bad, Farang good. I guess if you say it enough times you might end up believing it.

[Travel2003]

they are not horrible drivers but actually excellent drivers with really poor etiquette.

Spot on.

[CobraSnakeNecktie]

I think I just took that route on the bus from Udon Thani to Chiang Mai.

Before Lampang is big mountain pass and some Thai trucker was hauling 3 interconnected trailers full of sticks and the last trailer flips over and completely blocks the pass.

This happened at like 2 or 3 am and the police finally show up at 7 am and direct traffic past. Perhaps they had cleaned up some other accidents related to this crash or maybe they thought it was safer when it became light.

When we pass the truck and trailer is still sprawled across the road and can just squeeze by.

Welcome to Thailand

[rene123]

Considering the amount of traffic and the crazyness of SOME drivers, I'm surprised there are not more accidents. That tells me that a lot of Thais are aware of the dangers and take precautions. I also won't drive highways at night, but I ride in the city at night all the time. Traffic in Thailand flows like water... in all directions at the same time and you just have to expect it. From what I've seen, the Thais know this and adjust accordingly. People who are set in their ways of what is right and what is wrong are often the ones that get into trouble.

[scorecard]

there are worst places in the world to drive...try Mumbai in India

Or Delhi in India, or Karachi in Pakistan.

I've never actually driven in any of these countries (would never try) but i've been a car passenger several times in all of these places.

Last time I was in Delhi, my consulting team occupied 2 cars to go to visit a client, first car started to cross an intersection on a green light but couldn't quickly get right across the intersection because many vehicles had jumped the red lights (before going green) and the intersection was in total chaos (in fact this is fairly 'normal' in Delhi).

Eventually our first car edged it's way by bluff and got across, against the traffic now mostly flowing the other way.

My driver (2nd car) was now stopped at the red light, but he became concerned (in panic) that he was now separated from our first car. Suddenly he took off, light still on red, hand continuously on the horn (meaningless anyway because everybody honks their horn every few seconds regardless of what's happening.

My driver scapped the side of our car against the front of a car trying to go the opposite way, no stopping just kept step by step bluff actions until across, then at breadneck speed for the next kilometre or so (narrow road) to try to catch up, with lots of bicycles and little kids on the side of the road etc).

This all continues for about 2 hours until we reached the destination.

I then told my local staff to provide cars for our client to come to us rather then go through the same thing again.

[bunta71]

they are not horrible drivers but actually excellent drivers with really poor etiquette.

Their excellence really show every time they hit a wet rainy patch of pavement. Imagine them using their excellent skills on ice...or backing a trailer into a parking space in under 561 attempts. Yep some excellent drivers here. All of them.

[VocalNeal]

Welcome to the real Thailand.

Yep, this is not Kansas!

Please take a reality pill and see me in the morning.

[TommoPhysicist]

You foreigner, if you not here, accident not happen. Go home!

Edited March 9, 2013 by TommoPhysicist

[Banzai99]

You foreigner, if you not here, accident not happen. Go home!

Exactly !

[rene123]

they are not horrible drivers but actually excellent drivers with really poor etiquette.

Their excellence really show every time they hit a wet rainy patch of pavement. Imagine them using their excellent skills on ice...or backing a trailer into a parking space in under 561 attempts. Yep some excellent drivers here. All of them.

Well I've seen the big tour busses go through gaps I didn't think were possible. They can negotiate down narrow sois with all sorts of obstacles parked in front of them. That tells me that SOME Thai drivers are very skilled.

[prestburypark]

@TBL.

One of my laws applies here i think Dancealot law #15 = Never, but never, ever drive through the Thai countryside @night.

Second that,I try not to drive in torrential rain too. Nightime driving an invitation to rear end some unlit object.

[bunta71]

they are not horrible drivers but actually excellent drivers with really poor etiquette.

Their excellence really show every time they hit a wet rainy patch of pavement. Imagine them using their excellent skills on ice...or backing a trailer into a parking space in under 561 attempts. Yep some excellent drivers here. All of them.

Well I've seen the big tour busses go through gaps I didn't think were possible. They can negotiate down narrow sois with all sorts of obstacles parked in front of them. That tells me that SOME Thai drivers are very skilled.

childs play where I come from

[thaibeachlovers]

Didn't expect so many responses, but hey!

Yes, I do know that other countries have worse drivers, or equally bad drivers on worse roads; being driven on the Sri Lankan west coast highway ( or what purported tro be a highway ) was even more terrifying, and on a Saudi tour bus, the driver had to be told in no uncertain terms to stop overtaking on blind bends, but my tale was about driving in Thailand, and believe it or not, I didn't see a single other farang driving.