Chiang Mai train bound for Bangkok derails

[hellodolly]

Just more fruit from the poison tree.

Agreed but the poison tree includes all the previous governments

Instead of the publicity stunt of a " secret " train journey to Surin, accompanied by a news crew, the Transport Minister needs to set about SRT and remind them the main function of a railway is to keep the train on the tracks and they are failing miserably.

I have no problem with a secret journey to Surin to ascertain the traveling conditions on the train.

I do have a problem with the Cabinet getting a special train and not taking it to Chiang Mai.

If you wanted to persuade a skeptical public that massive investment is needed in a shiny new high speed rail system what better way than to have multiple incidents on the existing system.

Signed A.Cynic.

I think the public will look at it more as a reason to properly maintain the existing system than to build one where they can have high speed accidents due to no maintenance. Especially as the existing plans for the Government do not go very far at all.

[colin2]

Thomas, Percy and Gordon are not happy with the fat controller !. Cos he has been lining his own pockets for years.

[hellodolly]

And they want a Singapore to China line?

Haha, the weak link in the entire system will be shown to be in Thailand on a repetitive basis. Then Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, Vietnam and China can see just what sort of a tin pot country this is run like.... Lets hope they get the message of this international loss of face on a constant basis wakes them up to the reality that this over-bloated sense of pride of their own Thai identity is totally insular and in reality they are just fooling themselves.

Self praise is no praise at all.

Do you think anyone will be riding the high speed service without shitting themselves all the way? Thais included. With the amount of derailments here one at high speed will be carnage, and I would put money on it happening within 6 months of opening. Flying NokAir would be safer. and even that is iffy.

You have been given false information. China is the one that wants the line from Singapore to China.

They approached the Thai Government about a joint venture through Thailand. They have experience in building High Speed Train systems and maintaining them. The Chinese are not stupid I don't know where you got that idea. They would see to it that a proper job was done.

The present Government wants no part of it as it would by pass Chiang Mai. The original plans did allow the possibility of a spur line to Chiang Rai.

[Mudcrab]

The trouble with the harmless and cute incidents is that they have the same ingredients S the harmful and not-so-cute tragically deadly ones . Whether it's worn loco bogies, worn tracks, track level/speed it is only a matter of time before Sombat the driver is pished off his head and lets his cousins kid have a go at the stick whilst he takes a nap and there could be a lot more fatalities. Just like the unthinkable with the Russian commercial passenger jet that fell out of the sky with the pilot's son and daughter at the controls a few years back....http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aeroflot_Flight_593 all 75 died and there was nothing found wrong with the aircraft! ( apart from the fact that it was a crashed twisted heap of molten metal...)

Apparently there was a software issue with the planes auto pilot. when the controls were held to the right (I think) for an extended period the autopilot turned off which led to the eventual crash.

[ragpicker]

You beat me to the punch Malthus101. I was thinking the exact same thing. I've made that trip about 15 times over the years without incident but have always been concerned when crossing that ravine. Seems this concern is becoming more and more justified lately.

[yooper2001]

Let me see Thailand # 3 in the world for traffic deaths and tour buses allowed to be so high that they tip over while rounding a curve and it seems every month a train derails. Who the heck is the transportation minister and if Thailand does not have one then they should put somebody in charge that will actually do the job of protecting it's citizens.

[umbanda]

Lampang business is booming!!! New route will be open to horse carriages..parallel to the train tracks..

[lee b]

No more train trips for me now ! What a joke

[Skywalker69]

If you wanted to persuade a skeptical public that massive investment is needed in a shiny new high speed rail system what better way than to have multiple incidents on the existing system.

Signed A.Cynic.

Thailand is definitely not ready for high speed rail. They don't even have the experience to handle model train sets.

100% agreed. Maybe this sulotion is better.

[Postmaster]

Rickyparkany. Agree m' lad. Incidentally where can I download those little charachters which appear at the end of your article? Thanks

[lomatopo]

They approached the Thai Government about a joint venture through Thailand. They have experience in building High Speed Train systems and maintaining them. The Chinese are not stupid I don't know where you got that idea. They would see to it that a proper job was done.

This New Yorker article about the rail boom in China was very interesting:

BOSS RAIL

The disaster that exposed the underside of the boom.

BY EVAN OSNOS

OCTOBER 22, 2012

The Wenzhou crash killed forty people and injured a hundred and ninety-two. For reasons both practical and symbolic, the government was desperate to get trains running again, and within twenty-four hours it declared the line back in business. The Department of Propaganda ordered editors to give the crash as little attention as possible. “Do not question, do not elaborate,” it warned, on an internal notice.

http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2012/10/22/121022fa_fact_osnos?currentPage=1

Edited August 24, 2013 by Scott
Edited for fair use

[ginjag]

Let me see Thailand # 3 in the world for traffic deaths and tour buses allowed to be so high that they tip over while rounding a curve and it seams every month a train derails

who the heck is the transportation minister and if Thailand does not have one then they should put somebody in charge that will actually do the job of protecting it's citizens

Sad really, the powers that be either don't care, or this style of management suits them, I feel sorry for the people employed to maintain this S#@T. It must be frustrating to be told no funds are available-or parts whatever is the case.

[chooka]

greedy monkeys cant even fix a train track

Who are the real fools? The locals that sell tickets, collecting money or the tourists that happily buy tickets for a train journey likely to derail?

I doubt the tourists are even aware of the frequency of derailments. They have probably just arrived in the country and didn't study the Thai news before they boarded their flights. Now if the railway authorities told them before they purchased their tickets then I will have to agree with you, they may be fools as you say.

[indyuk]

There were no casualties. Why is it that a Thai news story never, ever includes an interview with some of the passengers?

The Minister can't allow that he would lose the option of "plausible deniability"

[CMKiwi]

Thai Rail is getting beyound a joke. I have done the CM to BKK trip once....and never again under the current conditions. When will the government wake up as spend some baht to get it up to an acceptable standard???? Never is the answer....the same as when I will next use Thai rail.

Its a great form of transport but not in this country unfortunately

[HeijoshinCool]

If you wanted to persuade a skeptical public that massive investment is needed in a shiny new high speed rail system what better way than to have multiple incidents on the existing system.

Signed A.Cynic.

Using "Thai" and "high-speed" in the same sentence is terrifying.

"Thai" and "shiny" is okay, though.

[attento]

Come on boys ! Let's get this High Speed train service operating . . . . .

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Come on boys ! Let's get this High Speed train service operating . . . . .

No... what you really want is a nuclear-powered high-speed train for Thailand.

That way, you can combine the potential for two different disasters into one even bigger one!

[pomchop]

I'm no engineer but it is pretty obvious that some major infrastructure improvements are desperately needed NOW.

High speed trains? I don't think so until they can figure out how to keep the low speed trains on the rails.

[Torrens54]

If you wanted to persuade a skeptical public that massive investment is needed in a shiny new high speed rail system what better way than to have multiple incidents on the existing system.

Signed A.Cynic.

A High-speed Train will simply come off the rails even quicker!

[drdoom6996]

UGH! Yet another one? This is stunningly bad news and reflects very poorly on the country. I took this train not 6 weeks ago. There have been I think 3 derailments since then. Such an acute problem should be addressed with urgency. Urgency . . . not something I would anticipate will happen though.

Could it be that the powers that be are URGENTLY taking care of other URGENT business in Parliament right now?

[PETERTHEEATER]

Don't worry the Transport Minister said the toilets would be upgraded within a month!

They wont be needed. Most passengers will soil themselves with anxiety waiting for the derailment:)

[boomerangutang]

Could it be sabotage? Not likely, but not impossible. Easy to do, with a pick-ax (and an ax to grind) and about 6 minutes, 2 guys could undermine a soggy little section of track bed, on one side.

[DGIE]

If these trains are just slow,can you imagine what happens if the train is a hi-speed and derailed?

[pomchop]

Try and even imagine 5 or 6 derailments in about a month along the same section in the USA or Europe etc and the trains are still running? I don't think so.

Of course there is a line between Thailand being loosey goosey with safety and regulations compared to the USA which can go to far in being a nanny...BUT....there are times when the government really does need to step in and shut down certain services until they are once again safe. Sooner or later a bunch of people are going to die in one of these derailments.

I have ridden the Bkk/CM train many times over the years but won't ride again until I have some confidence that the infrastructure has been repaired properly.

Peak backpacker season is coming up soon and most every single bkk/cm train will be packed full of backpackers and Thais going upcountry for loy kratong and Kings Birthday...just imagine the negative press if a few hundred from a few dozen countries get killed and all their homeland newspapers and TV blast the story all over the world. Not exactly what a tourism authority wants to see.

[tominbkk]

UGH! Yet another one? This is stunningly bad news and reflects very poorly on the country. I took this train not 6 weeks ago. There have been I think 3 derailments since then. Such an acute problem should be addressed with urgency. Urgency . . . not something I would anticipate will happen though.

No money for keeping up the tracks, gotta subsidize the rice first!

[zydeco]

Okay, everyone. Just lock yourselves in your houses or condos. Unless there is a fire or another flood, we should be 90 percent alright. But this is not a place to go travelling in right now. If the police don't kidnap you on the way to the bank to get money for a trip, the taxi driver you use might pull out a samurai sword on you. If you make it past the taxi, the bus may fall down a ravine or pull a head on with a truck or have it's top sheared off because it banged into a too low sappan loy. Go in a mini bus and the odds get worse. Try a trip on a motorcycle or bicycle, and you've just written your own death warrant. At least the BTS is secure, except for when its doors suddenly pop open while en route between stations.

[yooper2001]

Let me see Thailand # 3 in the world for traffic deaths and tour buses allowed to be so high that they tip over while rounding a curve and it seams every month a train derails

who the heck is the transportation minister and if Thailand does not have one then they should put somebody in charge that will actually do the job of protecting it's citizens

Sad really, the powers that be either don't care, or this style of management suits them, I feel sorry for the people employed to maintain this S#@T. It must be frustrating to be told no funds are available-or parts whatever is the case.

Maybe they can get more funds by charging a hefty fine for breaking the law. Not the usual 200 bt for not wearing a helmet I see 100 traffic laws broken every day from motorbikes and cars driving on the wrong side of the road to watching cars drive through stop lights to passing cars over a yellow line. It goes on and on

[boomerangutang]

Thailand doesn't have real estate taxes. How about levy a tax (and enforce it) on land and estate owners? Most of them are rich Chinese-Thai and most are absentee - essentially hoarding millions of rai and doing a whole lot of nothing with it. Use the money to fix the train problems.

[moe666]

It's the monsoon season up North, so you get all sorts of minor subsidence, which clearly gives problems for the existing ill-maintained partly-logging-line built-on-the-cheap, but so long as nobody gets injured then so what ?

But the idea of trying to run a high-speed heavy-use line beyond Uttaradit, where it enters the mountains, has been rejected even by the pork-barrel politicians, which is why their vaunted 'Bangkok-Chiangmai Hi-Speed line' is planned to end well-short of Chiangmai, leaving the harder part to be built sometime later (if ever) by private-enterprise.

The sensible option would be to continue (perhaps speed-up) the already-underway track-doubling, and start maintaining existing lines/rolling-stock better, and stop pretending that this equates to some sort of Brave-New-World, or that it gives the Chinese what they want, a heavy-freight line from southern-China to Singapore (which just happens to run through Thailand) to speed their exports towards their markets.

But that won't give as many brown-envelopes, or involve 50-year loans, for the taxpayers to shoulder.

If anyone bothered to check it out there is always more derailments this time of the year as Ricardo says what is a big suprise is no major track wash out as in pass years.