Is Thailand really the 3rd worst for road casualities on the planet ?

[laobali]

Those stats, like many others (crime, etc) have to be taken with a grain of salt (i.e. a bit of consideration) as there are no doubt many, many countries in the world with far worse stats than Thailand.

However, reporting "standards" (or reports at all) are at best incomplete (or non-existent) and at worst, heavily "doctored" by various authorities than have a vested interest in making things look better than they really are. "Western" (or perhaps "First World") countries tend to be a little more honest with reporting such matters.

And you know this how ? Which countries ? You have definitive proof ?

Exactly, so with or without your grain of salt, which countries might have worse figures than Thailand?

[stoli]

Maybe there are new numbers out. I checked on this last month to verify the numbers. At that time, Thailand was #4. Are you saying they are shooting for the #1 spot? Hope that is not their goal. I always have to remember that Thailand has such a huge number of motorcycles. The U.S. does not, in comparison by population, not does China, which are both very big countries. I wonder what their number would be if by population they had the same number of motorbikes? Lots of motorbikes deaths in the U.S, , even with a small population of motorcycles. And yes, I still ride my motorbike every day...

[CroBiker]

I rode in all SEA countries except Indonesia and Vietnamese are by far worst drivers I've ever seen. It is incomparable with Thailand. But Filipinos are much better educated drivers than. Thai. And as far as I'm concerned Burmese are better than Thai too.

[venturalaw]

I do not know anything about the law enforcement in the Philippines. But, in Thailand it is almost non existent, and the court system is equally impotent. There is no deterrent here. People drive like madmen, kids drive motorcycles, people drive without helmets, four people on one scooter, etc, etc. In places like Samui the police are completely absent from their jobs. Completely. Rumor has it that up to 60 people die on Samui every month, from road accidents, the majority of them being motorbikes. The authorities refuse too let the figures be published. It is just too embarrassing to them, as it allows the world to see they are doing NOTHING. On many levels sometimes it does appear Thailand is going backwards in time. Thailand strives to be number one in road accidents. Some do not seem to understand being number one is not always good.

Lack of enforcement is the problem. Plus, if one complains about an accident, it requires the police to actually work which is discouraged. Case in point, a Thai friend's car was side-swiped by someone who wanted to get in front of her while she was entering the super-hwy in Chiang Mai. My friend didn't even see it coming - and then the driver that hit her just took off. My friend went to the police and was told that perhaps it was her fault (in an effort to avoid paperwork for the officer) since the driver who hit her was not present. She explained the lack of logic - why would she report an accident where she hit someone and they left the scene?? After much argument the officer ran the license plate number she provided of the person who hit her. The officer claimed it must be a fake plate because it was not in the system. My friend later found out that if the police call in a suspect of a hit and run and it turns out to be the wrong suspect, the police officer is subject to being sued. Hence, why would the officer follow through? First it requires work, second it exposes the officer to potential liability. In the mean time, the driver who has no problem hitting cars and leaving the scene may encounter and kill a motorcyclist next time. Another reason why the system is so screwed up.

[Cuban]

The accident rate generally only goes up when the Thais are driving and it's night-time or day-time.

[terryw]

The standard of driving in Vietnam is a lot worse and more dangerous than in Thailand. Driving through red lights, the wrong way down a street and not stopping at junctions are regarded as normal driving. Cars frequently use their size to bully motorbike drivers. The horn is frequently used and at night many vehicles do not switch on their lights. There are three reasons why road deaths are lower than Thailand. Firstly, the bad roads means that traffic frequently has to move slowly, secondly the police in some cities do enforce the wearing of helmets and lastly the number of road deaths is almost certainly underestimated.

[Johpa]

I have been driving in Thailand for just over 30 years now and find the average Thai driver to be a pretty decent driver. Yes, there are a lot of motorcycles and scooters and when such a vehicle is involved in an accident, fatalties are common. But the same is true in the US, it is just that the percentage of two-wheeled vehicles in the US to total vehicles on the road is very small. And although, in Thailand, you do see families with three or more people on a scooter, you do not read about entire families being killed in accidents because these people are usually seen riding slowly and cautiously along the shoulder of the road.

The high fatality rate in Thailand is not caused by the average Thai being a "bad" driver but by several other factors. First, as noted above, is the high percentage of two-wheeled vehicles where even the most minor incidental contact or the most minor error in judgement can lead to a fatality. Second is the prevelance of alcohlism in the general population, especially in the adult male population. And third is the endemic corruption of the constabulary and the judicial system as exemplified by the recent Red Bull heir case. But contrary to those here who have nothing better to do that berate the Thai people in a psychological attempt to cover up their own feeligs of inadequacy, the typical Thai I meet and ride along with as a passenger, I have found to be a competant driver.

[spidermike007]

I do not know anything about the law enforcement in the Philippines. But, in Thailand it is almost non existent, and the court system is equally impotent. There is no deterrent here. People drive like madmen, kids drive motorcycles, people drive without helmets, four people on one scooter, etc, etc. In places like Samui the police are completely absent from their jobs. Completely. Rumor has it that up to 60 people die on Samui every month, from road accidents, the majority of them being motorbikes. The authorities refuse too let the figures be published. It is just too embarrassing to them, as it allows the world to see they are doing NOTHING. On many levels sometimes it does appear Thailand is going backwards in time. Thailand strives to be number one in road accidents. Some do not seem to understand being number one is not always good.

Lack of enforcement is the problem. Plus, if one complains about an accident, it requires the police to actually work which is discouraged. Case in point, a Thai friend's car was side-swiped by someone who wanted to get in front of her while she was entering the super-hwy in Chiang Mai. My friend didn't even see it coming - and then the driver that hit her just took off. My friend went to the police and was told that perhaps it was her fault (in an effort to avoid paperwork for the officer) since the driver who hit her was not present. She explained the lack of logic - why would she report an accident where she hit someone and they left the scene?? After much argument the officer ran the license plate number she provided of the person who hit her. The officer claimed it must be a fake plate because it was not in the system. My friend later found out that if the police call in a suspect of a hit and run and it turns out to be the wrong suspect, the police officer is subject to being sued. Hence, why would the officer follow through? First it requires work, second it exposes the officer to potential liability. In the mean time, the driver who has no problem hitting cars and leaving the scene may encounter and kill a motorcyclist next time. Another reason why the system is so screwed up.

Yes, it Sometimes feels as if the system was designed by criminals, to protect criminals. Bizarre libel laws, to prevent you from complaining about shoddy work, corruption, malfeasance, incompetence, or lack of professionalism. Heavy censorship to prevent the media from exposing people undermining society. And incompetent police who are not interested in work that does not generate cash. How does a society in this position every improve, or advance one wonders?

[spidermike007]

The standard of driving in Vietnam is a lot worse and more dangerous than in Thailand. Driving through red lights, the wrong way down a street and not stopping at junctions are regarded as normal driving. Cars frequently use their size to bully motorbike drivers. The horn is frequently used and at night many vehicles do not switch on their lights. There are three reasons why road deaths are lower than Thailand. Firstly, the bad roads means that traffic frequently has to move slowly, secondly the police in some cities do enforce the wearing of helmets and lastly the number of road deaths is almost certainly underestimated.

I have found Vietnam overall to be a pretty terrible place. Super unfriendly people, a horrific govt., weird colonial attitudes mixed with communist platitudes, and generally a poor place to live, so not sure if there is really any appeal to speak of. After three trips there, I hope I never have to go back! And yes, the traffic in the big cities is sheer insanity. I could actually see where it would be more dangerous to drive there.

[txp158]

Thailand could be the worst for road casualties in the universe, but if you drive responsibly you are still less likely to die on the road in Thailand than anywhere else. It's like lung cancer which is one of highest leading cause of death worldwide. But if you don't smoke, you will be much less likely to die from lung cancer. What you do is more important than where you are.

[willyumiii]

Thailand wins. It has more motorbikes, especially when comparing Bangkok with Manila, and the majority of road deaths in Thailand are motorbike related. There is a Canadian show called "Don't drive here" There was an episode for Bangkok and one for Manila. I'll let you guess which city the host had an accident in...

I fear this may be changing.

More and more Thais are purchasing four wheeled vehicles, cars and trucks.

Most have never driven anything larger than a small cc motorbike before purchasing their four wheeled vehicle.

Driver's training seems to consist of " get out on the road and do it".

As a result, I see many Thai car and truck drivers driving their four wheeled vehicle just like they drive their motor bikes.

Too fast and all over the road with no consideration of how wide the road is.

They don't seem to realize that their vehicle is wider than a two wheeler and that the weight factor of a large vehicle has a lot to do with reaction time, stopping time and the damage it will do to whatever and whoever it slams into.

With more and more inexperienced car and truck drivers on the road, I expect fatalities to go up even more.

Car and truck drivers have more protection in an accident, but the motorcycles, bicycles and pedestrians, the odds of surviving are getting worse.

The majority of deaths in Thailand may still be motorcyclist, but I think more and more are car and truck related!

Car and truck caused!

[A1Str8]

No. It's the second.

[robhufton]

For me, India has the worst and noisiest (honking horns) driving

[Aussieroaming]

I have driven in over 60 countries world wide. For me Thailand has the worst drivers I have ever seen.

My brother says in Vietnam the drivers are worse. I have not been there yet. I believe the statistics are

bad here because Thailand is moving slowly from basically just scooters and a few cars to even more

scooters and significantly more cars. Most of the car drivers have little experience driving cars. While

in North America and Europe most people get there drivers licence/learners permit at 16 here most

people get their drivers licence to become taxi/commercial drivers at age 25 or 30. Little experience

and no understanding of driving for conditions. The scooter drivers are bowling pins and young 14 -18

year old scooter drivers have the invincibility of youth. Not so invincible. As long as police are not

interested in enforcing driving laws other than to collect tea money, the standard of driving will only

improve slowly as more drivers get more experience. The small fines do not get drivers to eliminate

poor habits, speeding, not signalling lane changes, red light runners, driving against traffic, not wearing

helmets, DUI, among the biggest problems.

Having driven in Thailand, Vietnam and Phils, personally I think Thailand is the BEST of them to drive in. Vietnam is by far the worst. Manila is just congested and clogged.