Distraction and poor experience main causes of motor accidents in Thailand: survey

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ACCIDENTS
Distraction and poor experience main causes of motor accidents: survey
The Nation

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BANGKOK: -- Eight per cent of Thai motorists (8 per cent) drive without a license and most of them are in the 18-24 years age bracket, according to a Nielsen survey.

The survey aimed to find out driving behaviours and in-car activities following the police reports that as many as 54,341 accident were reported in Thailand in 2012 with 7,634 fatalities, 3,551 major injuries and 17,465 minor injuries. This indicates that 3 out of 10 motorists in Thailand have been involved in a motor accident and one solid cause of motor accident is the motorists themselves who are distracted away from the road ahead or the steering wheel in their hands.

"It is interesting to know whether or not motorists continue to engage themselves in those activities that caused them accidents previously. According to the survey findings, they do. Most motorists still change the stations on their radio or switch CDs while driving, as well as to chat with their passengers, despite these being two prominent causes of road accidents. Additionally, the survey finds that 36 percent of motorists still talk on their mobile phone without the use of a hands-free device as well," said Somwalee Limrachtamorn, Nielsen's Director of Automotive Business.

"Perhaps, this suggests that the activities mentioned are essential to the motorists and in a way inevitable. Makers of automobile may take advantage of this by developing new safety features or functions to help mitigate risks from such behaviors of the motorists and enhance the overall safety performance of their products. We must not evaluate the sufficiency of safety measures in place and determine what the next steps should be in the case where they are found to be lacking."

The survey revealed that talking on mobile phone without the use of a hands-free device is the greatest cause of motor accident (11 per cent). The level of risk is the same for drinking of beverages while driving. These are followed by chatting with passengers and manipulation of the radio (8 per cent).

According to this survey, most motorists with record of accident or near-accident have three to five years of driving experience, followed by those with 11 to 15 years of driving experience.


-- The Nation 2013-11-20

[waza]

I believe the tinting the car windows to the point when you can barely see out of them may contribute as well.

[Thai at Heart]

Driving up the wrong side of the road is a bit of a fundamental problem I find. Seems they didn't survey the 10 to 14 year old motorcycling portion of society either.

[JoeThePoster]

I coulda sworn it was brake failure and slippery roads.

[JRSoul]

A cascade of garbage hanging off the rear vision mirror, blocking a swathe of vision certainly doesn't help, even if it consists of lucky amulets and other Buddha related items.

My BIL has a plastic block with a Buddha image that sits in a wooden tray on the dashboard. It bounces out on a regular basis and has to be caught before it hits the floor while the car veers across the road. I suggested glue, and was told that was inappropriate.

[moe666]

I think these are also the cause of most accidents world wide, why do smokers pay a higher premium for insurance then throw in texting.

[wedders]

The inability to use the steering wheel, thereby cutting every corner. Not looking before entering a main road. The inability to drive at a speed somewhere between very slow and very fast. The belief that the rear view mirror is supplied solely to dangle Buddhas and 20 baht flower garlands, which incidentally considerably restrict forward vision. Driving without lights. Driving with entire light shows front and back. No road sense or spatial awareness. Crap roads full of potholes. Truck and bus drivers on yaba. Overloaded, illegally modified vehicles. Etc. Etc. Etc.

[ginjag]

Driving licenses are too easy to obtain.------------No provisional L plate for a year.------------far too many underage drivers----------only spasmodic road blocks for tea money rather than patrols.--------------uninsured/tax vehicles on the road-----------big majority of PARENTS condone illegal drivers------the list is endless----------distraction/experience is a problem, but the biggest problem is ATTITUDE total disregard for others and themselves--most idiots

Drugs and alcohol another big problem. In stead of having 2 major problems that most crop up re-accidents, here you have a multitude to correct, and that is near impossible.-----Government/police/local authorities and again parents adhering to the LAW. near anarchy on the road, and OFF.

Edited November 20, 2013 by ginjag

[clockman]

No mention of alcohol.! must be that Thainess, again.

[impulse]

I coulda sworn it was brake failure and slippery roads.

Ghosts. I was told it was ghosts.

'Course, I'd be a little distracted if I saw one, too.

Edited November 20, 2013 by impulse

[slapout]

Some wise man once said " we cannot make a hammer 100% idiot proof", I doubt that any motorized vehicle would stand a chance against this bunch of drivers. There use to be figuress that something like 95% of the accidents are preventable. just due to the human factor (stupid) involved.

A 30% casuality rate on the roads, make some of the wars in history look appealling instead of letting the Thai drivers take a shot at you.

[Pib]

Another reason is the desire to gain another meter or second while driving...and the dangerous moves accomplished to gain that extra meter or second...get ahead of that vehicle in front of you. I think it's rooted in the Thai desire to be in the front of the line because driving on a road is nothing more than being in a long line of vehicles.

[ginjag]

Some wise man once said " we cannot make a hammer 100% idiot proof", I doubt that any motorized vehicle would stand a chance against this bunch of drivers. There use to be figuress that something like 95% of the accidents are preventable. just due to the human factor (stupid) involved.

A 30% casuality rate on the roads, make some of the wars in history look appealling instead of letting the Thai drivers take a shot at you.

When conducting a survey the stats thrown out are not the main factors. I earlier listed more important causes, the most I listed are the things that could be dealt with before the accidents. Lets tell the truth MOST of these are NOT accidents---mere incidents.

[stubuzz]

In car TV screens on the centre console.

Driving too close to the vehicle in front.

Selfishness.

Lack of common sense........

[teacherofwoe]

No driving lessons from a qualified instructor + no comprehensive examination = you already know the answer.

[stubuzz]

Swerving in and out of traffic.

[lostmebike]

Swerving in and out of traffic.

Swerving to avoid the BIB's roadblock cos I know I'm gonna get charged with some new, imaginary BS!

[lostmebike]

This indicates that 3 out of 10 motorists in Thailand have been involved in a motor accident.

I know this figure is high enough but I reckon it's even higher. IMO so many people hit and run here that I'm sure maybe half of all motorists are involved in RTA's.

[MaxLee]

No,... I, I , I, ME ME ME, FACE FACE FACE is the reason people in Thailand drive so screwed up like crap...

[mca]

From my observations I think a complete inability to see beyond the front of their noses coupled with a selfish driving attitude is the root of many accidents. Many drivers here simply don't allow themselves enough time to react to other road users or potential hazard because their head is up their arse. The times I've seen drivers on highways suddenly swerve out of the way of a pothole into the next lane at the very last minute in front of other traffic when I've already seen the pothole well in advance and already made my manoeuvre to avoid it,

Just this morning I was at a set of traffic lights and a Benz S-Class was sitting with his indicator going in the turn-right lane. Lights turned green, Benz moves off, starts to turn right and gets t-boned by a guy on a motorcycle flying up the outside of the cars.

[jaltsc]

"According to this survey, most motorists with record of accident or near-accident have three to five years of driving experience, followed by those with 11 to 15 years of driving experience."

It doesn't matter how long one has been driving if their driving experience is limited to unsafe practices. How about total disregard for laws and statutes, in addition to having no awareness of dangerous behaviors? How many times do you see riders on a motorbike during rainy weather with an umbrella in one hand and a cell phone pressed against their ears? I have never seen anyone stopped for this infraction (If it is an infraction on the books). These dangerous behaviors have less to do with lack of awareness and more to do with Thailand not requiring motor vehicle operators to pass adequate driving tests. In addition, if there are statutes requiring safe operation of motor vehicles, they are not uniformly enforced. The responsibility for these crashes lie on everyone, top to bottom, who ignore safety practices.As long a a driver has a few hundred baht for pay offs, and this practice is tolerated, no improvement in road safety will ever happen.

[MaxLee]

U-turners are the killers number one

[JoeLing]

Luckily I haven't suffered any bad accidents yet but I do have
major problems with "distractions" here on the island.

[wedders]

One more to add to my earlier rant. Undertaking - especially when I'm in the left lane, indicating (in good time) to take a left turn, some dozy motorcyclist will come steaming up on the inside regardless.

What's more, they look at you as if YOU have done something stupid!

Which reminds me - my gf took her test after considerable persuasion a month back. She came home with the 'driving code' booklet a couple of days earlier, looked at me in amazement, and said "teerak, it say have to overtake on right side!"

Sums it up really.

Sent from my GT-I9500 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[anon467367354]

most people I see in cars are looking at their phones. The light turns green, they sit there or start off ever so

freaking slowly because they are looking at their phones.

I have a driver one day a week for about an hour. When he talks on the phone and hears something

negative, he slows down, something again he goes even slower and does the lane drift thing.

What to do? Can't change what they don't understand.

[Mampara]

Actually the main problem of most of the accidents are the inability of many Thais to judge distance on the roads when traveling over 50km/Ph with the on coming traffic traveling at over 70km/Ph. in other-words they find it difficult to judge distance in 3D just ask any Thai to draw a box in 3D in under 5 seconds on a plain piece of paper without a ruler and you will understand what i mean.

[Felt 35]

Do they need a survey to understand that!

[transam]

Lack of police presence, not doing the job they are paid for is the biggest problem. There is a vast police force in LOS but where are they ?.. Fines are daft, folk will risk the daft fines cos there is no other problem.

[cooked]

To my simple mind, the Thai mentality on the roads is strongly influenced by habits gained while driving a buffalo cart.

[seajae]

absolute bullshit, every rider/driver has a mobile phone glued to their hands/ears, they do not indicate ands just pull out ion front of and expect you to stop, they cross over the centre line because the car in front of them is going to slow and they expect you to pull off the road to allow them to do it, they have no idea of what the actual road rules are and they are mostly too worried about losing face to drive correctly. Maybe if the police actually got on the roads and booked all the idiots that break the rules instead of hiding in their airconditioned rooms it would help, but then so would actual driving lessons and learning the road rules. Even when they catch underage/drunk/unlicensed drivers they let them ride/drive home , what a pack of idiots the police are(and my BIL is a reasonably high up officer, cant speak or understand english at all). Until such time the police/govt enforce the laws it will never get better but that would mean actually doinf some work and we all know that is just not on. Tonight when we went to pick up our daughter we had to swerve to avoid a car driving with no lights in pouring rain and on our side of the road overtaking a bike without any indicators going, they are idiots, we are lucky there are good ones amongst them or the roads would be far worse.