Bus Packed With Tourists Crashes Into Surat Thani Bridge

[sirchai]

Work permits for foreigners bus drivers are available on request. Please call 085 5555555

Happened before when they'd 'bypassed" the electronic security system of some sky trains. One crashed into another and Bangkok Post was looking for "foreign train drivers with experience."

But accidents even happen in the first world? or more developed countries. Don't know about second world much though.-

Edited July 19, 2013 by sirchai

[sausageandmash]

Any news on Thaivisa, and the Thaihaters appears from under their bridges!! width=19 alt=bah.gif>

Accidents like the one in the OP happens all over the world. Just before moving here, 3 of my customers were killed in a simular accident. Happened in Copenhagen! With a trained driver, new bus (everything in working order), but just like here not familiar with the route.

I anyone should be blamed here, it should be the friendly person, who try to help guiding the driver and didn't think about the low bridge and the too high bus.

Good, at least nobody killed! width=20 alt=wai2.gif>

Looks like a Thai @#$kisser just appeared though. Of course this happens all over the world. The difference is how it is handled. I'll bet you a year's wages that the Danish driver did not flee the scene.

[johnlandy]

from the extended article at Khaosod: Songsermsungrueng Tour said it has provided help and accommodation for the tourists who were affected by the incident, and would provide transport to deliver the tourists to their destination the day after.

Chances are, the Tour heads are going to pay absolute minimum - they can get away with.

Added note: At Mae Sai, which is Thailand's northernmost town, there is a big white hotel (I don't know its name) where giant tour buses pull up to the front. I watch fascinated while the tops of the buses look to have as little as 1 inch clearance from the concrete beam above. They're going slow, but it's an accident waiting to happen.

Added note 2: The last 2 times I did a r-trips on VIP buses in northern Thailand, I buckled up. Guess how many others used their seat belts (passengers and drivers)? Yup: none.

AND, it's difficult when the buses are not fitted with seat belts

[joecos]

from the extended article at Khaosod: Songsermsungrueng Tour said it has provided help and accommodation for the tourists who were affected by the incident, and would provide transport to deliver the tourists to their destination the day after.

Chances are, the Tour heads are going to pay absolute minimum - they can get away with.

Added note: At Mae Sai, which is Thailand's northernmost town, there is a big white hotel (I don't know its name) where giant tour buses pull up to the front. I watch fascinated while the tops of the buses look to have as little as 1 inch clearance from the concrete beam above. They're going slow, but it's an accident waiting to happen.

Added note 2: The last 2 times I did a r-trips on VIP buses in northern Thailand, I buckled up. Guess how many others used their seat belts (passengers and drivers)? Yup: none.

The green bus company now run mini-buses from Mai sai to Chiang Sen & Chiang Rai most of them do not have seat-belts fitted .And I might add these buses go very very quick .

[johnlandy]

From the look of the bridge , not the only person to have hit it !

Another undertrained driver without the skills to drive a bus

Lucky no deaths this time

Sent from my iPhone 6

using ThaiVisa app

But this is also a testament to the lack of consistency in building regulations and poor awareness (or even absence) of health and safety regulations.

No bridge should be built without sufficient clearance for "normal" vehicles, including buses (abnormal vehicles would include large plant vehicles, such as cranes, etc.)

Any in any case, there should be clear warning signs in black and yellow diagonal striping directly at the point of potential impact stating the clearance height. I see no such signs here!

In many countries an gantry is erected about 100 to 200 m before a low bridge with flexible metal pipes at the height of the bridge suspended below the gantry. If the vehicle is too high the top hits the pipes resulting in a very loud warning noise (I have heard it!) with minimum damage to the truck or bus. Reflective material on the pipes assists with visual warnings as well. The driver having been warned should then stop. Not so expensive to install considering the cost of road building. This should help to prevent accidents like this one.

I agree that accidents like this one occur in many other countries - but not caused by professional drivers who know their stuff. What can go wrong will eventually go wrong.

Absolutely correct "if you always do what you always did, you will always get what you always got"

[laurentbkk]

Just another normal day , normal accident , normal behavior ..... nothing to add and of course nothing will be done , nothing will ever change ... if you expect to receive I dont know how many millions tourists , make sure they are safe ..This is not Disneyland here

[Teddy3943]

Any news on Thaivisa, and the Thaihaters appears from under their bridges!! width=19 alt=bah.gif>

Accidents like the one in the OP happens all over the world. Just before moving here, 3 of my customers were killed in a simular accident. Happened in Copenhagen! With a trained driver, new bus (everything in working order), but just like here not familiar with the route.

I anyone should be blamed here, it should be the friendly person, who try to help guiding the driver and didn't think about the low bridge and the too high bus.

Good, at least nobody killed! width=20 alt=wai2.gif>

Thai thinking! Denying that Thai traffic and especially bus and van transport is very dangerous here in LOS. Then blame someone who is not the driver, while a driver always has the total responsibility over the vehicle he/she is driving. And then st*pid like a child: pointing at other situations where also mistakes were made... Incredible!

[Pattaya28]

Another joke.

Driver unable to judge the height of the bus versus the height of the bridge,

Driver fled the scene.

Tour bus company employed this driver.

Let's shove this incident under the carpet as usual.

[bangkokheat]

Happens all over Europe and USA all the time.

Not just a Thai problem.

One would have thought the car leading the bus might have had a clue.

and the drivers in europe and usa are nowhere to be found at the accident, right?

[Larry001]

Thailand is fast becoming an absolute joke in the world of tourism. We hear of accidents, vilence, rip offs against tourists everyday on this site. The Government is too concerned about their own pocketsand well being to see how it is ruining this country. No wonder there are so many Westerners leaving for Cambodia and Philippines; and others who have vouched never to return.

[deecee10]

I can understand some posters feeling that others are always looking for the negative in these articles.

And if you want to defend all things, or at least most things Thai, that's your right.

However you're going to have tough time defending Thailand's rail and road safety record which is appalling by any standards, especially of a country which actively seeks tourists to come in their thousands.

Also bear in mind TV is one of the few outlets for criticism and comment about Thailand. Not much point in writing to your local politician, police chief or indeed the wider Thai public. They are not interested in a westerner's viewpoint.

[rametindallas]

Happens all over Europe and USA all the time.

Not just a Thai problem.

One would have thought the car leading the bus might have had a clue.

"Happens all over Europe and USA all the time."

Are you saying that dumbass bus drivers in the USA and Europe are following cars they don’t know on roads they don’t know at nighttime and when the wreck the bus they run away. All over and all the time. Who is your target audience for this bull crap? You write like a troll; and a poor one at that.

[bushwacker]

"If you look straight ahead, you will see the highlight of our tour this morning, another famous low hanging bridge ..."

[schietkop]

You would think the driver would stay and apply first aid, I assume they had a first aid training don't they? Ohhh maybe he ran to get help...!

[belg]

GPS modules cost only 3000 baht

drivers like to flee the scene in stead of helping victims

a blood test should be taken

fleeing the scene should be punished with at least 5 years in jail as a starter

driver probably bought his licence ...

[sikishrory]

not a surprise. Songserm has many safety issues. Their ferries lack any lifevests or life-rafts and they are mostly overloaded. Diesel fumes can enter the passenger compartments.

It is incredible how Songserm gets a license to operate. Since they overload their vessels there are not always seats for everyone. If you are lucky you can buy a seat in the aircon room for an additional 50 baht per person. Songserm should be forbidden to operate.

To make it worse.. they are only around 100 baht cheaper.. (or if you buy a seat .. only 50 baht cheaper) than the Lomphraya catamaran service. Lomphraya's catamaran are fitted with life-rafts and life-vests and have seats for everyone.

There are many ways to dies but certainly Songserm is not worth it..... This busaccident is not a surprise because Songserm does not care a bit about safety.

This is mostly correct.. Travelling with songserm is always a terrible experience.

For starters their customer service is non existant. They make you feel more like an animal the way they talk with you.

Have witnessed them throw a mooring rope at a tourists head without the slightest acknowledgement of what happened.

They make you wait for hours and hours in between any bus and boat connections. Shipping you around to as many of there mates in between so you can spend your money on crap food, toilets and even charging your phone.

The boats don't appear to ever get serviced. The diesel fumes are so strong in the cabin that sitting inside for 1 and half hours will make you feel ill.

There are SOME (not enough for everyone) lifejackets but they are in tatters hanging on the backs of some seats, stuffed with food wrappers, faded from years of being in the sun, missing bits and peices from fidgety tourists.

I have seen them overload buses so that some people are left without a seat on long journeys. The last one i saw 3 people have to spend a night next to the toilet which reeked of urine and was leeking urine into the aisle.

Really really miserable way to travel. When you see Thai people complaining about it that is a statement in itself.

[monkey4u]

"Hey boss how much you pay me extra today? I just make your bus a convertible, very rare vehicle, you can sell make big money"

Its good to see the driver listened to the trainer at the driving school. If you have an accident RUN AWAY.

If you are not there near the bus when the police come then you were not driving it.

[metisdead]

A post in violation of this guideline in the Forum Rules has been removed:

Posting in all capitals or in all bold, and using large or unusual fonts and colors is bad netiquette.

If you don't want your post to be deleted, abide by the posting guidelines.

[sangfroid]

.............................The driver fled the scene but was later apprehended by the police......................... alt=crazy.gif width=20 height=27>

....for a split second I thought he didn't...but naah....not my lucky day.

*************************************

He'll be driving a taxi in Bangkok in a few days

Edited July 19, 2013 by sangfroid

[monkeycountry]

I believe this is the first time I've read of a bus or truck driver doing a runner and then getting captured!

That's good police work. Or the guy couldn't run vary fast.

He had no problem running fast, but as the article states, he had no idea where he was, so ran in circles. Eventually he hit his head on a low hanging object and got caught.

[maximillian]

It might help, in order to prevent such accidents, to install 100 meters and 50 meters before the bridge a device with wooden bars hanging at a hight of 2.8 meters. The bus would have hit the bars with a bang and have warned the driver of the danger ahead.

I do not blame the driver too much for his mistake. Imagine you drive the bus at night and heavy rain under an unsecuerd bridge like that. You had to concentrate so hard on the street and might easily overlook the obstacle above your bus. And yes, he concentrated on the leading car infront of his bus. Don't understand why he ran away.

And, as one wrote before, please give a GPS to all bus drivers to help them to find their right way. Would have been much cheaper to prevent this accident, than to pay for the damage of material and loss of face.

To the injured persons, a quick and total recovery.

[wilcopops]

I'm surprisd we don't see/hear more of this sort of thing. It seems to me that coaches and drivers both need a serious review. As the number of package tourists increases more and more are shipped about in buses and coaches driven by people whose prime aim seems to be how quickly they can drive without any consideration for their customers.

As for the coaches - well I've seen the way some are built and they are nothing more than a flimsy aluminium box on a frame - you certainly don't want to be in one of those when it comes to a sudden involuntary halt.

[jeff2258]

Any news on Thaivisa, and the Thaihaters appears from under their bridges!! width=19 alt=bah.gif>

Accidents like the one in the OP happens all over the world. Just before moving here, 3 of my customers were killed in a simular accident. Happened in Copenhagen! With a trained driver, new bus (everything in working order), but just like here not familiar with the route.

I anyone should be blamed here, it should be the friendly person, who try to help guiding the driver and didn't think about the low bridge and the too high bus.

Good, at least nobody killed! width=20 alt=wai2.gif>

I agree with what you written here, an accident is an accident and no one will like it to happen. Can any of those people who likes to talk bad about everything in Thailand guaranty that he or she can never have any accident in other countries??? If feels not safe then don't step foot there and go somewhere else. I'm not Thai, I live here for a year now and have been travelling around the whole Kingdom in buses, train and other public transport, more then you can imagine. Every country have the same type of drivers, good and bad, but not everyone is to be blame in an accident.

[wilcopops]

It might help, in order to prevent such accidents, to install 100 meters and 50 meters before the bridge a device with wooden bars hanging at a hight of 2.8 meters. The bus would have hit the bars with a bang and have warned the driver of the danger ahead.

I do not blame the driver too much for his mistake. Imagine you drive the bus at night and heavy rain under an unsecuerd bridge like that. You had to concentrate so hard on the street and might easily overlook the obstacle above your bus. And yes, he concentrated on the leading car infront of his bus. Don't understand why he ran away.

And, as one wrote before, please give a GPS to all bus drivers to help them to find their right way. Would have been much cheaper to prevent this accident, than to pay for the damage of material and loss of face.

To the injured persons, a quick and total recovery.

It might help, in order to prevent such accidents, to install 100 meters and 50 meters before the bridge a device with wooden bars hanging at a hight of 2.8 meters. The bus would have hit the bars with a bang and have warned the driver of the danger ahead.

I do not blame the driver too much for his mistake. Imagine you drive the bus at night and heavy rain under an unsecuerd bridge like that. You had to concentrate so hard on the street and might easily overlook the obstacle above your bus. And yes, he concentrated on the leading car infront of his bus. Don't understand why he ran away.

And, as one wrote before, please give a GPS to all bus drivers to help them to find their right way. Would have been much cheaper to prevent this accident, than to pay for the damage of material and loss of face.

To the injured persons, a quick and total recovery.

Part of the "3 Es" - This is traffic engineering which is a completely unknown science in Thailand. The design of the roads is HOPELESS - it basically seems to run on the premise that "if something bad is going to happen, it's going to happen" and there is nothing you can do about it - nothing could be further from the truth. Even with the worst road users imaginable, you can avoid most incidents and collisions.

[jeff2258]

It might help, in order to prevent such accidents, to install 100 meters and 50 meters before the bridge a device with wooden bars hanging at a hight of 2.8 meters. The bus would have hit the bars with a bang and have warned the driver of the danger ahead.

I do not blame the driver too much for his mistake. Imagine you drive the bus at night and heavy rain under an unsecuerd bridge like that. You had to concentrate so hard on the street and might easily overlook the obstacle above your bus. And yes, he concentrated on the leading car infront of his bus. Don't understand why he ran away.

And, as one wrote before, please give a GPS to all bus drivers to help them to find their right way. Would have been much cheaper to prevent this accident, than to pay for the damage of material and loss of face.

To the injured persons, a quick and total recovery.

GPS might help to find the right way, but will not tell how high is the bridge and when driver concerntrating on the GPS, Booooom another accident happens.

[ginjag]

It might help, in order to prevent such accidents, to install 100 meters and 50 meters before the bridge a device with wooden bars hanging at a hight of 2.8 meters. The bus would have hit the bars with a bang and have warned the driver of the danger ahead.

I do not blame the driver too much for his mistake. Imagine you drive the bus at night and heavy rain under an unsecuerd bridge like that. You had to concentrate so hard on the street and might easily overlook the obstacle above your bus. And yes, he concentrated on the leading car infront of his bus. Don't understand why he ran away.

And, as one wrote before, please give a GPS to all bus drivers to help them to find their right way. Would have been much cheaper to prevent this accident, than to pay for the damage of material and loss of face.

To the injured persons, a quick and total recovery.

It might help, in order to prevent such accidents, to install 100 meters and 50 meters before the bridge a device with wooden bars hanging at a hight of 2.8 meters. The bus would have hit the bars with a bang and have warned the driver of the danger ahead.

I do not blame the driver too much for his mistake. Imagine you drive the bus at night and heavy rain under an unsecuerd bridge like that. You had to concentrate so hard on the street and might easily overlook the obstacle above your bus. And yes, he concentrated on the leading car infront of his bus. Don't understand why he ran away.

And, as one wrote before, please give a GPS to all bus drivers to help them to find their right way. Would have been much cheaper to prevent this accident, than to pay for the damage of material and loss of face.

To the injured persons, a quick and total recovery.

Part of the "3 Es" - This is traffic engineering which is a completely unknown science in Thailand. The design of the roads is HOPELESS - it basically seems to run on the premise that "if something bad is going to happen, it's going to happen" and there is nothing you can do about it - nothing could be further from the truth. Even with the worst road users imaginable, you can avoid most incidents and collisions.

Not when riding a m/cycle and your front wheel disappears into a 1 foot deep hole in the highway. or your car wheel hits it and you buckle your wheel, main highway from Udon to Khorat--your eyes need to be on the surface rather than anticipating other road users actions. POlice should report road conditions as well as local highway departments. if a local person does it, it is binned --

Agree These bus companies ARE totally responsible for the welfare of it's fare paying passengers.

[maximillian]

not a surprise. Songserm has many safety issues. Their ferries lack any lifevests or life-rafts and they are mostly overloaded. Diesel fumes can enter the passenger compartments.

It is incredible how Songserm gets a license to operate. Since they overload their vessels there are not always seats for everyone. If you are lucky you can buy a seat in the aircon room for an additional 50 baht per person. Songserm should be forbidden to operate.

To make it worse.. they are only around 100 baht cheaper.. (or if you buy a seat .. only 50 baht cheaper) than the Lomphraya catamaran service. Lomphraya's catamaran are fitted with life-rafts and life-vests and have seats for everyone.

There are many ways to dies but certainly Songserm is not worth it..... This busaccident is not a surprise because Songserm does not care a bit about safety.

This is mostly correct.. Travelling with songserm is always a terrible experience.

For starters their customer service is non existant. They make you feel more like an animal the way they talk with you.

Have witnessed them throw a mooring rope at a tourists head without the slightest acknowledgement of what happened.

They make you wait for hours and hours in between any bus and boat connections. Shipping you around to as many of there mates in between so you can spend your money on crap food, toilets and even charging your phone.

The boats don't appear to ever get serviced. The diesel fumes are so strong in the cabin that sitting inside for 1 and half hours will make you feel ill.

There are SOME (not enough for everyone) lifejackets but they are in tatters hanging on the backs of some seats, stuffed with food wrappers, faded from years of being in the sun, missing bits and peices from fidgety tourists.

I have seen them overload buses so that some people are left without a seat on long journeys. The last one i saw 3 people have to spend a night next to the toilet which reeked of urine and was leeking urine into the aisle.

Really really miserable way to travel. When you see Thai people complaining about it that is a statement in itself.

I have to agree with what you say, but please be aware that Lomprayah isn't that much better.

My last trip from Samui to KoTao with them was very disapointing. The way they treat their customers, starting from buying the ticket to checking in the catamaran, loading and unloading their luggage, checking out, checking in at KoTao is simply rude.

Furthermore they charge for every little bit of service. Wish tourist would stay away from them for a year or so. They might learn a lesson. But, no, tourists are flocking in in thousands every day, so why should Lomprayah staff be polite ? They are coming anyway, more and more from Russia and China and they pay without complaining.

[jackr]

The driver fled the scene

I don't know why they include that bit as it is de rigueur and expected. Not wanting to face the music or owning up to one's mistakes is not culture, it is weakness. Pathetic!

[DocN]

Suuuuuuuuuure!

Happens in Europe and the USA aaaaaaaaaall the time!

I have travelled all over Europe in buses- not ONCE did a driver have to ask for the way or ask a car- driver to take the lead.

Drivers run from the accidents aaaaaaall the time in Europe?

Yes, of course!

Guys on the appologists- side: get a XXXXXXX grip!

[dasy]

Any news on Thaivisa, and the Thaihaters appears from under their bridges!! width=19 alt=bah.gif>

Accidents like the one in the OP happens all over the world. Just before moving here, 3 of my customers were killed in a simular accident. Happened in Copenhagen! With a trained driver, new bus (everything in working order), but just like here not familiar with the route.

I anyone should be blamed here, it should be the friendly person, who try to help guiding the driver and didn't think about the low bridge and the too high bus.

Good, at least nobody killed! width=20 alt=wai2.gif>

Bought my self a Tom Tom camper Live for driving around in my camper, you enter all the dimensions of the vehicle and this will never happen easy no brains needed