19 dead in Thai bus smash: authorities

[bangon04]

"Witthichart Kallayanamitr, director of the company under the ministry of transport which owns the bus, said its normal capacity would have been 32 people."

Is something lost in translation? A double deck bus with only room for 32 passengers? Sounds weird..

Of course if there were at least 41 casualties then it was probably overloaded, but only 32 seats??

Or maybe he meant the usual capacity for the pick up truck following the bus was 32 passengers.....

Edited July 23, 2013 by bangon04

[chooka]

"Witthichart Kallayanamitr, director of the company under the ministry of transport which owns the bus, said its normal capacity would have been 32 people."

Is something lost in translation? A double deck bus with only room for 32 passengers? Sounds weird..

Of course if there were at least 41 casualties then it was probably overloaded, but only 32 seats??

Or maybe he meant the usual capacity for the pick up truck following the bus was 32 passengers.....

5 on a motorcycle, 30 in a ute, could easily jam 90 into a bus

[selftaopath]

When wanting to make a right hand turn, many local people in Isaan, will drive many meters on the wrong side of the road to make their turn. They then turn into the wrong side of the road they are entering and seem to be devoid of the potential consequence of oncoming vehicles. Doesn't make a bit of sense/ logic to me, but I'm not Thai.

[trainman34014]

When wanting to make a right hand turn, many local people in Isaan, will drive many meters on the wrong side of the road to make their turn. They then turn into the wrong side of the road they are entering and seem to be devoid of the potential consequence of oncoming vehicles. Doesn't make a bit of sense/ logic to me, but I'm not Thai.

Yes; and they will tell you that you don't understand 'Thainess'.

[brianlg]

ONCE AGAIN for those who can't READ and/or UNDERSTAND the news/police report of the incident !!

The BUS DRIVER was NOT at fault AT ALL ... as the "CEMENT TRUCK" [in whatever form ie. Ute/Large rigid truck/Large articulated truck/ etc] CROSSED OVER INTO ONCOMING TRAFFIC !!!

This accident was by then UNAVOIDABLE ... and I should know. I am a bus/coach driver fully authorised and accredited to operate any size bus/coach here in Australia AND had a similar incident happen to me some six years ago at 2am one morning. It was only a small car [on the wrong side of the road ; speeding AND all 3 occupants were DRUNK and without seatbelts] BUT this impact caused more than $5000.00 damage to my bus and left the car in 3 pieces with the driver DEAD and both other passengers seriously injured. LUCKILY I was returning empty to my depot and had no passengers on board !!!

The consequences of being hit by ANY type of heavily-laden "CEMENT TRUCK" are unthinkable !!!

SO all you TV "know alls" DON"T blame the bus DRIVER who "in all events" would have done his absolute best to avoid the accident because [as I tell all my passengers] "I try to avoid any type of accident at all ... because if you think about it I AM THE FIRST ONE TO ARRIVE AT THE SCENE !!!"

The average large coach weighs around 19 tonnes [or more] AND a "Cement truck" [perhaps ready-mix type] around 12-20+ tonnes ... SO there is always going to be major carnage in any event ... ESPECIALLY in a "HEAD-ON" .

The BUS DRIVER was almost certainly killed based on the PICS.

My condolences to the families of all the INNOCENT victims ... RIP

Brian LEGGE NSW AUSTRALIA

[boomerangutang]

How about a rule, in Thailand, to compel transport bosses to ensure their hired drivers don't drive to exhaustion. The cement truck driver (in the OP) probably had a boss, unless he owned his rig and was an independent. I've heard many stories where bus and truck drivers feel compelled to drive as many miles as possible - in order to keep job and/or make a few extra baht. Also, sand, gravel and 'fill' trucks are paid by the load, not by the hour, so naturally, they speed and push themselves to drive long hours ....and FAST. Not good. A mother and child were killed by one of those trucks recently, in my neighborhood. They speed up and down crappy roads here, pounding potholes to ever bigger sizes.

[saroq]

"The truck crossed from the opposite lane of traffic and hit the bus," said local police officer Lieutenant Colonel Assavathep Janthanari, adding that a pickup truck behind the bus had also been involved in the crash."

Read again:

This has nothing to do with the safety standards of the bus or the pick-up truck,

If a cement truck is crossing the lane from the opposite direction, no safety standards can help you anymore.

The only safety that could have avoided this tragic accident would have been safety barriers in the middle of the road.

But that would have only shift the accident to the other side of the lane.

Although the news story does say "Safety standards are often poor in Thailand and transport accidents are relatively common." In this case there may not be any safety issues with the bus but there are many examples where there are. As a general rule safety standards for transportation in Thailand are lax. Whether that be seats not secured to the floor in buses, lack on maintenance of railway lines or just individuals who don't give due attention to the task of driving.

[DocN]

ONCE AGAIN for those who can't READ and/or UNDERSTAND the news/police report of the incident !!

The BUS DRIVER was NOT at fault AT ALL ... as the "CEMENT TRUCK" [in whatever form ie. Ute/Large rigid truck/Large articulated truck/ etc] CROSSED OVER INTO ONCOMING TRAFFIC !!!

This accident was by then UNAVOIDABLE ... and I should know. I am a bus/coach driver fully authorised and accredited to operate any size bus/coach here in Australia AND had a similar incident happen to me some six years ago at 2am one morning. It was only a small car [on the wrong side of the road ; speeding AND all 3 occupants were DRUNK and without seatbelts] BUT this impact caused more than $5000.00 damage to my bus and left the car in 3 pieces with the driver DEAD and both other passengers seriously injured. LUCKILY I was returning empty to my depot and had no passengers on board !!!

The consequences of being hit by ANY type of heavily-laden "CEMENT TRUCK" are unthinkable !!!

SO all you TV "know alls" DON"T blame the bus DRIVER who "in all events" would have done his absolute best to avoid the accident because [as I tell all my passengers] "I try to avoid any type of accident at all ... because if you think about it I AM THE FIRST ONE TO ARRIVE AT THE SCENE !!!"

The average large coach weighs around 19 tonnes [or more] AND a "Cement truck" [perhaps ready-mix type] around 12-20+ tonnes ... SO there is always going to be major carnage in any event ... ESPECIALLY in a "HEAD-ON" .

The BUS DRIVER was almost certainly killed based on the PICS.

My condolences to the families of all the INNOCENT victims ... RIP

Brian LEGGE NSW AUSTRALIA

So...for all of you who can not THINK or are using this as a defence and apollogy for Thais all over: it is about ROAD SAFETY and it really doesn't matter, if it is a cement- truck crashing into a bus or vice versa!

It is about motorcycle drivers without helmets, drunk driving, piss- poor safety standards in buses or vans, speeding, drivers falling asleep or being drugged and...and ...and...

19 people got killed, many more injured in THIS case, there are almost daily reports on road- carnage all over the place and many times it is about vehicles, in the wrong lane.

I really feel sad for the victims of each and every of these cases, but one really has to ask oneself, why this happens and if a single person (the driver) is really the only one o blame.

[SantiSuk]

Is bus travel really any more dangerous than driving your own car?

I don't know the answer, but for once statisticians might be able to provide useful information that might either change Thai attitudes (or dismiss foreigners' whining )

[AhFarangJa]

so sad,

My wife and Son travel to Prasart a couple times a year on these buses, I always fear for them until I get the "we are home" call,

It is always the innocent that seem to get hurt most in these accidents,

Condolences to the families, and R.I.P.

[gaucho]

Yesterday, coming back from Phayao on my big bike a f...g CEMENT TRUCK came at me head on after crossing "double yellow" lines to pass a car. I had no where to go but the shoulder with about 3ft to spare. I get pissed when the idiots in the cars cross the yellow lines and come right at you. These morons love to play Russian roulette here but a cement truck???? Common sense where art thou? Not here in the Land of Shame.

They love doing crap like that and have no respect for any bike big or not. But when going to Ko Chang in the car we saw plenty of people also not caring about our car in a similar situation. There is a large portion of selfish idiot Thais (not all as there are far more who hate it too) who have no idea that overtaking in turns bends and other low viability situations is ok.

100%correct ...a couple of trips back i was enjoying afternoon beer beside my hotel pool ..noticed a problem with a just arrived taxi and the two elderly passengers .....they later i learnt had travelled from the airport ...one of them had literally crapped himself ...the driver wanted double money ...incidentally 5000baht ...the feevin xxxx ...for his extra time to clean the cab ....the two old guys were great ...real hoots ...first timers ..never left the uk before ...both in their 70s ...one of them had shit himself in absolute fright at the driving ...the driver had engaged in a macho loss of face bullshit .......with an ongoing car ...literally centimetres from disaster ...thais will not give up their right of way ...

[hullupullo]

"Witthichart Kallayanamitr, director of the company under the ministry of transport which owns the bus, said its normal capacity would have been 32 people."

Is something lost in translation? A double deck bus with only room for 32 passengers? Sounds weird..

Of course if there were at least 41 casualties then it was probably overloaded, but only 32 seats??

Or maybe he meant the usual capacity for the pick up truck following the bus was 32 passengers.....

ม.4 (ก) VIP has 32 seats. + 2 drivers +2 bushostess + truckdriver + 2 (?) on pickup= 39. There was 3yo baby who died and one 4yo on bus too, maybe babies didn't have own seat? =41

http://home.transport.co.th/en/tcl-standard/bus-standard.html

[Rust Never Sleeps]

My moped at 40-50 kph seems like the safest bet in Thailand.It might take a bit longer to get to my destination but I feel more control in most situations.

We (foreigners) can slowly teach Thais by example,(my G/F now wears a seatbelt when in cars or minivans)

[Bof]

Sad to say, but after almost 20 years in this wonderful country, I can very confidently affirm that if you randomly picked some Thai drivers and got them to take a proper european standard driving test, the failure rate would inevitably be 100 %.

[rbrooks]

Cement truck driver would have fled but because of injuries sustained he was unable to run away.

[smurph]

A terrible thing. 19 is a lot of lives, but still no more than the daily average which is almost 30... http://asiancorrespondent.com/111079/thailands-road-carnage-continues/

[Bof]

The slaughter goes on and on ....

[watcharacters]

RIP to the victims. It seems like there has been an unusually high number of bus and van accidents lately?

.

I believe it's within the usual and accepted numbers.

[johnlandy]

How can one reply to (or comment upon) events such as this, without being seen to be Thai bashing 'as so many posting here on TV appear to be so embarrassed to see.

If a person is a cretin or an imbecile, pretty words are not gonna change that fact, if they have an IQ of a dandelion 'that is what they have got' That is the facts.

For anyone to say or even suggest (as has been done) that they should conduct briefings such as are held on commercial airline flights shows that they are just having a wank and saying

the first thing that comes into their miniscule minds.

Events such as this of which there are so many, will continue to occur on a regular basis until the time the authorities take and enforce some hard decisions "e.g. lifetime diving disqualification for repeat offenders,

proper vehicle checks, enforcing strict controls on driving duration, drivers log books and random and regular checking of same, police being out and being seen (not just to extort money) instead

of standing outside schools acting as pedestrian crossing wardens"

Everyone 'worldwide' knows that the country is just one big joke and that nothing will be done, nothing will change, until someone drops a device such as they did on Hiroshima and Nagasaki "which certainly got their attention"

but at what cost??

[johnlandy]

RIP to the victims. It seems like there has been an unusually high number of bus and van accidents lately?

.

I believe it's within the usual and accepted numbers.

Accepted numbers!! Accepted by who? idiots and cretins. No number 'above zero' is acceptable, achievable is another issue.

[simple1]

A terrible thing. 19 is a lot of lives, but still no more than the daily average which is almost 30... http://asiancorrespondent.com/111079/thailands-road-carnage-continues/

Unfortunately the reporter was not up-to-date. Road deaths confirmed by a senior Thai government official is averaging 26,000 a year, that's 71 a day.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Road-death-toll-in-Thailand-among-highest-in-the-w-30202066.html

[thaibeachlovers]

I am sorry for all those people and there families. I do NOT blame the driver of the bus.

I live near a high way, a bloody damned Thai high way. Not safe at all, bad road and even 90 km/h is to fast. Busses on the way to Chiang Mai pass on a regular basis, 6 till 10 busses in a row, driving fast on the right lane, 120 till 140 km/h.

What do you think?

Don't know which road you mean, but the #11 ( I think ) that goes from Lamphun to C M is supposed to be a top highway, but in fact is badly surfaced and way too narrow for the amount of traffic. Everytime I drive it I am surprised to arrive unscathed.

Driving at night, buses really race along- how can they be safe?

IMO it's just luck there aren't more calamities involving buses.

[thaibeachlovers]

Is bus travel really any more dangerous than driving your own car?

I don't know the answer, but for once statisticians might be able to provide useful information that might either change Thai attitudes (or dismiss foreigners' whining )

IMO merely travelling on a Thai road is dangerous, regardless if in a car or on a bus.

However, before I got a Thai driving licence I went all over in buses and never felt scared, though I never sat at the front in case of an accident.

[Credo]

There are also some very poorly designed roads with some very dangerous intersections. I routinely travel through a couple of provinces and one rather new road has a U-turn just past an intersection and on a curve. This is a big road and the traffic moves very quickly.

[allalong]

A terrible thing. 19 is a lot of lives, but still no more than the daily average which is almost 30... http://asiancorrespondent.com/111079/thailands-road-carnage-continues/

Unfortunately the reporter was not up-to-date. Road deaths confirmed by a senior Thai government official is averaging 26,000 a year, that's 71 a day.

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Road-death-toll-in-Thailand-among-highest-in-the-w-30202066.html

70-80% of that 26000 are motorcycle deaths which is no big surprise . The amazing truth is that usually (in developed countries) public transport is safer than travelling in your own vehicle,In Thailand its the opposite.

[kartman]

38 out of 50 killed in bus crash in Italy today.