Thai Transport department to enforce slope test for public transport buses

[Rorri]

skorchio, on 28 Mar 2014 - 10:32, said:

Any buses which canot pass the stability test will be sold into private transport syndicate's hands, for use in Phuket, the graveyard for Thai buses (with the steepest road hill in Thailand aswell). Why kill Thais when the same death stats can be charged to Chinese or Russian accounts?

I think you need to do a bit more touring of Thailand, not just Phuket, before you can say that Patong hill is Thailand's steepest, I can assure you, it is not.

[Torrens54]

If the bus does not pass the tests for registration it is obviously not in a safe condition and hence should not be given any extra time.

I hope those who complain about Top Gear read this headline

Sorry, but whoever wrote this headline, may NOT be a Native English Speaker.

There is still NO EXCUSE for the BUFFOONS at Top Gear and their half-smart followers who sit and snigger at Thais who make an honest effort to deal with the complexities of the English language.

If you want to criticize, then give us a good example of your command of the Thai language before you start laughing at others.

[wilcopops]

I must say I'm curious as to the test itself. Do they determine that the bus fails if it falls over before the incline reaches 30 degrees?

And if half of them are failing that's a lotta pickin' up those boys must be doing!

I think you might need to google some examples of the test - at there tip point the vehicle can be recovered. however there are also tests to study the superstructure AFTER a rollover - this is at least equally important.

[Tomtomtom69]

On a note that other posters are making about safety standards , i was reading sometime ago on a forum here about manufactured vechiles here in Thailand ie: Toyota pickups, Isuzu, etc.

A transport engineer from the States said that they would not pass any safety standards in his Country let alone EU.

I can't go into any detail as it was a few years ago, but it stuck with me as ive driven both, now driving a Hilux, both bought new. Oh dear !

Why is it that some of these trucks are being exported to Australia, NZ then (the former is about to lose it's entire car manufacturing industry in part due to the grossly unbalanced Thai-Australia FTA where Thai vehicles can enter Australia duty free but Australian ones are still subject to up to 300% duty) and some even make it to Europe (although not America) and they seem to pass safety standards in those countries alright?

My brand new Isuzu pickup seems to do just fine, so far. So I don't believe what that guy said unless you can be more specific. All I can think of is that Thai vehicles sold locally generally only have 1 or 2 front airbags and no side airbags like in many foreign countries. Not that many years ago extra or extended cabs only had seat belts in the front seats, although I think seat belts are now installed in all seats. So in that sense they're a bit behind on the safety aspects but that's a legislation issue. That doesn't however imply that quality is somehow less - as mentioned Thailand has become a manufacturing base for export of vehicles, particularly pickups.

[Rorri]

phanangpete, on 28 Mar 2014 - 11:52, said:

On a note that other posters are making about safety standards , i was reading sometime ago on a forum here about manufactured vechiles here in Thailand ie: Toyota pickups, Isuzu, etc.

A transport engineer from the States said that they would not pass any safety standards in his Country let alone EU.

I can't go into any detail as it was a few years ago, but it stuck with me as ive driven both, now driving a Hilux, both bought new. Oh dear !

That's because 1) there is no progressive accelerator, it is either full on or full off (rarely reaches this point, 2) the brake pedal is for decorative purposes, though sometimes it is pressed by mistake, 3) indicators are again decorative, sometimes used in conjunction with the hazard lights and 4) the most dangerous thing, the loose nut behind the steering wheel (the driver), nothing on earth, except death, can fix this problem.

[beowolf2012]

maybe they have to look many plases not only Bangkok - Hua Hin - Phuket. I mean all over Thailand

all the province. Us white farang have long leg and if you have to sit long time in a bus with no leg place

then when you come to destination you for sure have pain on your bag.

[Rorri]

Tomtomtom69, on 28 Mar 2014 - 12:55, said:

Thai at Heart, on 28 Mar 2014 - 07:07, said:

Bus owners would be allowed to improve the bus condition and get the test again within one month. If the buses still do not pass the test, another three months will be given. If the buses still do not pass the third test, another six months will be allowed for improvement.

But he said if the buses still do not pass the final test, owner will not be able to renew the annual license registration.

He warned that if buses failed the slope test are caught being used, owners will face up to five years of jail term and fine of 40,000 baht.

Do they realise how absurd this makes them sound. Every time the bus fails , the time to repair gets longer. 45% are failing.

Are they really going to put 45% of the buses off the road?

I doubt it, but let's savour the thought of having fewer buses on Thai roads...that would be a good thing I think. There are already too many buses on Thai roads as it is.

They are reducing the numbers naturally, that is, they are destroyed by rolling down ravines, gutters, or hitting other buses, trucks, I think you get my gist.

[wilcopops]

On a note that other posters are making about safety standards , i was reading sometime ago on a forum here about manufactured vechiles here in Thailand ie: Toyota pickups, Isuzu, etc.

A transport engineer from the States said that they would not pass any safety standards in his Country let alone EU.

I can't go into any detail as it was a few years ago, but it stuck with me as ive driven both, now driving a Hilux, both bought new. Oh dear !

Why is it that some of these trucks are being exported to Australia, NZ then (the former is about to lose it's entire car manufacturing industry in part due to the grossly unbalanced Thai-Australia FTA where Thai vehicles can enter Australia duty free but Australian ones are still subject to up to 300% duty) and some even make it to Europe (although not America) and they seem to pass safety standards in those countries alright?

My brand new Isuzu pickup seems to do just fine, so far. So I don't believe what that guy said unless you can be more specific. All I can think of is that Thai vehicles sold locally generally only have 1 or 2 front airbags and no side airbags like in many foreign countries. Not that many years ago extra or extended cabs only had seat belts in the front seats, although I think seat belts are now installed in all seats. So in that sense they're a bit behind on the safety aspects but that's a legislation issue. That doesn't however imply that quality is somehow less - as mentioned Thailand has become a manufacturing base for export of vehicles, particularly pickups.

Your suppositions facts are incorrect

The FTA - was not a single industry agreement - it covered almost ALL trade between the 2 countries and was mostly set up to take place in 5 year steps.

. Thailand has reduced duties on commercially imported vehicles from Oz and by 2015 they should be eliminated altogether. Personal imports and second-hand vehicles are not covered.

Australia actually has more lax regulations than Europe in various vehicle - especially Utes.

If you go into the spec of pickups , that leave the factories here in Thailand you'll find a huge list of variations on the vehicles depending on which country they are being sent to.

This can be from minor electrical specs - even heaters! - to major running gear, suspension, transmission, engine and body variations....as I said they are priced accordingly too.

That said - over the past 10 years or so the Thai market destined vehicles have added many safety features...but you still have a chassis built vehicle with leaf sprains and a high centre of gravity.

in most countries they are sold as work vehicles, but in Thaiand they range aright actress the market from humble work horses to luxury family transport - they'r still a pickup at heat though.

PS - as for aussie cars and the demise of the industry - firstly it's economy of scale and secondly who in their right mind would want a 4 litre saloon car or ute outside OZ - they built for a small home market and they simply didn't have an exportable product

Edited March 28, 2014 by wilcopops

[wilcopops]

I thought that most of the bus accidents were caused by driver failure and not mechanical

This seems to be an incredibly naive assessment as it is NEVER one single factor that contributes to an incident.

The Thai authorities love to give "driver error" as a reason...it closes the whole thing and everyone can go home.

but have you never thought about what happens AS A RESULT of driver error? how the vehicle behaves on poor roads or as it careens off the road? The structure of the vehicle and the design of the road are massively important factors both before and after any driver error.

The difference between Thai road safety and other countries is not the necessarily drivers - they are fallible all over the world - it is the standards regarding all aspects of road safety that Thailand lags behind in.

[Benmart]

Glad to see this. It's a start and i hope it's expanded to more than just buses.

[eddie61]

the bus could pass any slope test, and have great brakes, but if the driver falls asleep, or hammers downhill in 5th, accidents will continue to happen

[laobali]

On a note that other posters are making about safety standards , i was reading sometime ago on a forum here about manufactured vechiles here in Thailand ie: Toyota pickups, Isuzu, etc.

A transport engineer from the States said that they would not pass any safety standards in his Country let alone EU.

I can't go into any detail as it was a few years ago, but it stuck with me as ive driven both, now driving a Hilux, both bought new. Oh dear !

Why is it that some of these trucks are being exported to Australia, NZ then (the former is about to lose it's entire car manufacturing industry in part due to the grossly unbalanced Thai-Australia FTA where Thai vehicles can enter Australia duty free but Australian ones are still subject to up to 300% duty) and some even make it to Europe (although not America) and they seem to pass safety standards in those countries alright?

My brand new Isuzu pickup seems to do just fine, so far. So I don't believe what that guy said unless you can be more specific. All I can think of is that Thai vehicles sold locally generally only have 1 or 2 front airbags and no side airbags like in many foreign countries. Not that many years ago extra or extended cabs only had seat belts in the front seats, although I think seat belts are now installed in all seats. So in that sense they're a bit behind on the safety aspects but that's a legislation issue. That doesn't however imply that quality is somehow less - as mentioned Thailand has become a manufacturing base for export of vehicles, particularly pickups.

Your suppositions facts are incorrect

The FTA - was not a single industry agreement - it covered almost ALL trade between the 2 countries and was mostly set up to take place in 5 year steps.

. Thailand has reduced duties on commercially imported vehicles from Oz and by 2015 they should be eliminated altogether. Personal imports and second-hand vehicles are not covered.

Australia actually has more lax regulations than Europe in various vehicle - especially Utes.

If you go into the spec of pickups , that leave the factories here in Thailand you'll find a huge list of variations on the vehicles depending on which country they are being sent to.

This can be from minor electrical specs - even heaters! - to major running gear, suspension, transmission, engine and body variations....as I said they are priced accordingly too.

That said - over the past 10 years or so the Thai market destined vehicles have added many safety features...but you still have a chassis built vehicle with leaf sprains and a high centre of gravity.

in most countries they are sold as work vehicles, but in Thaiand they range aright actress the market from humble work horses to luxury family transport - they'r still a pickup at heat though.

PS - as for aussie cars and the demise of the industry - firstly it's economy of scale and secondly who in their right mind would want a 4 litre saloon car or ute outside OZ - they built for a small home market and they simply didn't have an exportable product

Just wondering, did you actually write this?

... leaf sprains ... Thaiand they range aright actress the market ... they'r still a pickup at heat ...

[wilcopops]

Glad to see this. It's a start and i hope it's expanded to more than just buses.

I'm afraid its NOT a start - road safety organisations, campaigns and research have been running in Thailand for years.....the problem is that they are more or less completely ignored by the government and enforcement agencies....so I think it is wishful thinking to call this "dictum" a "start.

Here are some of the pronouncements, reports and organisations that successive governments have chosen to ignore.......

· BANGKOK, 13 December 2013: Thailand will introduce measures to cut road fatalities by 50% by the year 2020, as part of a road safety campaign that has been placed on the national agenda.

· Thailand Road Safety Action Plan

2004-2008 - Ministry of Transport (MOT) - The Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning (OTP)

· Arrive Alive: ASEAN Regional Road Safety and Action Plan (2005-2010)

· ASIAN TRANSPORTATION RESEARCH SOCIETY

Transportation Research Challenges In Thailand Sub-Project on - Thailand road safety

· 2010 - Contributing Factors of Road Crashes in Thailand: Evidences from the Accident In-Depth Study

· Thailand Accident Research Center (TARC)

Edited March 28, 2014 by wilcopops

[wilcopops]

On a note that other posters are making about safety standards , i was reading sometime ago on a forum here about manufactured vechiles here in Thailand ie: Toyota pickups, Isuzu, etc.

A transport engineer from the States said that they would not pass any safety standards in his Country let alone EU.

I can't go into any detail as it was a few years ago, but it stuck with me as ive driven both, now driving a Hilux, both bought new. Oh dear !

Why is it that some of these trucks are being exported to Australia, NZ then (the former is about to lose it's entire car manufacturing industry in part due to the grossly unbalanced Thai-Australia FTA where Thai vehicles can enter Australia duty free but Australian ones are still subject to up to 300% duty) and some even make it to Europe (although not America) and they seem to pass safety standards in those countries alright?

My brand new Isuzu pickup seems to do just fine, so far. So I don't believe what that guy said unless you can be more specific. All I can think of is that Thai vehicles sold locally generally only have 1 or 2 front airbags and no side airbags like in many foreign countries. Not that many years ago extra or extended cabs only had seat belts in the front seats, although I think seat belts are now installed in all seats. So in that sense they're a bit behind on the safety aspects but that's a legislation issue. That doesn't however imply that quality is somehow less - as mentioned Thailand has become a manufacturing base for export of vehicles, particularly pickups.

Your suppositions facts are incorrect

The FTA - was not a single industry agreement - it covered almost ALL trade between the 2 countries and was mostly set up to take place in 5 year steps.

. Thailand has reduced duties on commercially imported vehicles from Oz and by 2015 they should be eliminated altogether. Personal imports and second-hand vehicles are not covered.

Australia actually has more lax regulations than Europe in various vehicle - especially Utes.

If you go into the spec of pickups , that leave the factories here in Thailand you'll find a huge list of variations on the vehicles depending on which country they are being sent to.

This can be from minor electrical specs - even heaters! - to major running gear, suspension, transmission, engine and body variations....as I said they are priced accordingly too.

That said - over the past 10 years or so the Thai market destined vehicles have added many safety features...but you still have a chassis built vehicle with leaf sprains and a high centre of gravity.

in most countries they are sold as work vehicles, but in Thaiand they range aright actress the market from humble work horses to luxury family transport - they'r still a pickup at heat though.

PS - as for aussie cars and the demise of the industry - firstly it's economy of scale and secondly who in their right mind would want a 4 litre saloon car or ute outside OZ - they built for a small home market and they simply didn't have an exportable product

Just wondering, did you actually write this?

... leaf sprains ... Thaiand they range aright actress the market ... they'r still a pickup at heat ...

Unfortunately i have "word completion" on my computer that "corrects" stuff like that.........to be honest I really don't have the time or inclination to correct half of it...I just leave it to the reader to use common sense to work it out - sometimes it's even quite humorous......but in the end, it's mostly pearl before swine anyway.

Did you have a point to make?

Edited March 28, 2014 by wilcopops

[godden]

Once again utter Thai tosh will give buses another 10 months carrying passengers in a death trap, buggers belief

[joshstiles]

....just another thailand joke.....let's see .....bus crashes killing 50 people.....the owner pays 40,000 baht.....no biggie.....put some bondo on it and back on the road....no wonder thailand ranks 3rd in the world for highway fatalities.....

you gotta love it....life is good

[wilcopops]

Once again utter Thai tosh will give buses another 10 months carrying passengers in a death trap, buggers belief

"buggers belief" - I take it you're having word prediction/completion problems too?

[bangon04]

What is the mentality of these people!!! If the vehicle fails the test then it should be impounded, and held until the owners pay for the vehicle to be roadworthy.End of story.

Surely if a vehicle fails the test, it falls over and smashes one side in on the floor, so it is even less roadworthy than it was when it started the test. Sounds like an incentive for the owners to go back for a second and third test......

[wilcopops]

What is the mentality of these people!!! If the vehicle fails the test then it should be impounded, and held until the owners pay for the vehicle to be roadworthy.End of story.

Surely if a vehicle fails the test, it falls over and smashes one side in on the floor, so it is even less roadworthy than it was when it started the test. Sounds like an incentive for the owners to go back for a second and third test......

That's not how the test is carried out

[bigbamboo]

I thought that most of the bus accidents were caused by driver failure and not mechanical

This seems to be an incredibly naive assessment as it is NEVER one single factor that contributes to an incident.

The Thai authorities love to give "driver error" as a reason...it closes the whole thing and everyone can go home.

but have you never thought about what happens AS A RESULT of driver error? how the vehicle behaves on poor roads or as it careens off the road? The structure of the vehicle and the design of the road are massively important factors both before and after any driver error.

The difference between Thai road safety and other countries is not the necessarily drivers - they are fallible all over the world - it is the standards regarding all aspects of road safety that Thailand lags behind in.

'....it is NEVER one single factor that contributes to an incident'.

Rubbish.

That may be true of air crashes but not incidents on the roads.

Quite the opposite in fact.

[wilcopops]

I thought that most of the bus accidents were caused by driver failure and not mechanical

This seems to be an incredibly naive assessment as it is NEVER one single factor that contributes to an incident.

The Thai authorities love to give "driver error" as a reason...it closes the whole thing and everyone can go home.

but have you never thought about what happens AS A RESULT of driver error? how the vehicle behaves on poor roads or as it careens off the road? The structure of the vehicle and the design of the road are massively important factors both before and after any driver error.

The difference between Thai road safety and other countries is not the necessarily drivers - they are fallible all over the world - it is the standards regarding all aspects of road safety that Thailand lags behind in.

'....it is NEVER one single factor that contributes to an incident'.

Rubbish.

That may be true of air crashes but not incidents on the roads.

Quite the opposite in fact.

A fine example of complete lack of understanding of road safety.

[BwindiBoy]

If the bus does not pass the tests for registration it is obviously not in a safe condition and hence should not be given any extra time.

I hope those who complain about Top Gear read this headline

Why would anyone complain? JC used the word in it's form as a term of racist abuse in a failed attempt at humour [deliberately, it wasn't just an unfortunate coincidence], whereas this article uses it in it's form as a word to indicate an incline.

Wasn't a failed attempt at humour. Made me laugh but then I'm not sensitive and totally PC. Some people need to lighten up.

utterly failed, but then again i have no time for racism.

But you do have time for racism because you and others that say the comments on Top Gear were racist are talking rubbish and just looking for an issue / trouble. You are fuelling racism. The bridge sloped, get over it!

[wilcopops]

Wasn't a failed attempt at humour. Made me laugh but then I'm not sensitive and totally PC. Some people need to lighten up.

utterly failed, but then again i have no time for racism.

But you do have time for racism because you and others that say the comments on Top Gear were racist are talking rubbish and just looking for an issue / trouble. You are fuelling racism. The bridge sloped, get over it!

What you say is totally contrary to the evidence above - your argument seems to be jaundiced by your own prejudices and without any backup reasoning.

Can you explain "talking rubbish"?

"Looking for trouble"

"Fuelling racism"? etc etc

Edited March 31, 2014 by wilcopops

[wilcopops]

I thought that most of the bus accidents were caused by driver failure and not mechanical

This seems to be an incredibly naive assessment as it is NEVER one single factor that contributes to an incident.

The Thai authorities love to give "driver error" as a reason...it closes the whole thing and everyone can go home.

but have you never thought about what happens AS A RESULT of driver error? how the vehicle behaves on poor roads or as it careens off the road? The structure of the vehicle and the design of the road are massively important factors both before and after any driver error.

The difference between Thai road safety and other countries is not the necessarily drivers - they are fallible all over the world - it is the standards regarding all aspects of road safety that Thailand lags behind in.

'....it is NEVER one single factor that contributes to an incident'.

Rubbish.

That may be true of air crashes but not incidents on the roads.

Quite the opposite in fact.

Try and explain your "thinking" behind that......