Chiang Mai tightens road safety measures

[webfact]

Chiang Mai tightens road safety measures

CHIANG MAI, 1 December 2014 (NNT) – Chiang Mai province tightens road accident prevention measures, stressing that all traffic law violations will lead to legal penalty, said the governor.

The governor of Chiang Mai Suriya Prasartbundit said that all sectors should emphasize on the accident prevention measures by enforcing on the law to reduce the number of road accidents.

He said that road accidents are the most common form of accidents that have occurred, but the public is still not quite aware of this fact.

According to him, the Chiang Mai Road Safety Directing Center will be more strict on the helmet inspections, particularly for students and parents as the recent surveys has shown that they wear helmet less frequently than others groups of people.

Authorities will be collecting information on road accidents, especially during the new year festival, increase alcohol test stations, and promote the awareness of safe driving regulations to the public and tourists.

He said that the province is will be increasing inspection stations along mountain routes in an attempt to reduce accidents.

He also insisted that the merchants in the province should not to take advantage of tourists. The better image and a lasting impression will make tourists return to Chiang Mai more, which will benefit the province's tourism industry in the long run.


-- NNT 2014-12-01

[Sparkles]

Hey Governor instead of collecting more information how about more police presence on the road (The're called road patrols) stopping speeding and breathlysing drunk motorists instead of stationary road blocks picking up tea money.

If you were serious about reducing road fatalities you would fine anyone without a helmet 1,000 baht and issue a receipt and jail drunk drivers then you might see some results.

The fact is Governor your fellow residents don't really care about road accidents,bad driving habits, unless it involves one of their family or someone they know.Its part of your culture.

[CMFarang]

Now I live in Chiang Mai and this should be interesting, but I expect it is just going to be another 2 week blitz at the month end for more New Years Booze at the Police Party.

The Mentality here is :

- Do not stop vehicles that run Red Lights, we make more $$ from the accidents they cause sooner or later

- Drunk driving , NO PROBLEM, carry on, and maybe you will cause an accident ( More $$ )

- Road rules , again , more Money the worse they drive.

- 6 PM , we all go somewhere, so no helmets are OK, Along with everything else.

- Traffic police, we sit in one spot, and wait for the traffic to come to us. Stagnant Police work.

The traffic here was bad 20 years ago, but today it is incredibly stupid. I view it as a comedy, and refuse to drive at all at certain times and days, due to my experience with the drivers. The POLICE are NOT TO BLAME, they are always at the accidents with their hand out.

[Hachi]

A certain person states he is doing all he can to bring "happiness back to the people".

As a part of road safety nationwide not just in CM, reducing road noise to some kind of normal (?) level may be a good ingredient in that soup.

Many hundreds if not thousands of motorcycles and other vehicles have incredibly loud exhausts - most sound like they have no baffles

in the exhausts whatsoever as they race through the streets.

Each motorcycle/car/truck with a non factory exhaust - Minimum 300 baht ticket.

The police/gov would immediately have a lot of baht in extra revenue per day. Would it be that difficult to enforce?

[Torrens54]

At Last!

Some swift and positive action is to take place to rid our roads of "accidents waiting to happen", all the wrong doers will be caught, fined,

jailed and taken off the roads of Chiang Mai, making it a Safer, Happier place for all of we Law Abiding folks.

We offer our sincere thanks to the Guv! This news swells my heart with such joy that I want to Burst into Song.

The "Toon" that springs to mind, is an oldie by Johnny Burnette from the Top Forty Charts of the 1960's,

and I dedicate it to the Governor...it's called...... Dreamin' I'm Always Dreamin'.

Edited December 1, 2014 by Torrens54

[NeverSure]

[alant]

check tax, cash,

check helmet, cash,

parking clamp tow, cash...

You will still see the police riding with no helmet and running red lights. Until they lead by example it is just a revenue ploy.

[lostmebike]

It'll be back to normal after they've made a few mill!

[Assurancetourix]

check tax, cash,

check helmet, cash,

parking clamp tow, cash...

You will still see the police riding with no helmet and running red lights. Until they lead by example it is just a revenue ploy.

Right or policeman with his boy behind him without an helmet;

photo shot a few days ago on Huai_Kaeo Thanon ( the road to go to Doi_Suthep ) not far from MAYA complex

[DeaconJohn]

Now I live in Chiang Mai and this should be interesting, but I expect it is just going to be another 2 week blitz at the month end for more New Years Booze at the Police Party.

The Mentality here is :

- Do not stop vehicles that run Red Lights, we make more $$ from the accidents they cause sooner or later

- Drunk driving , NO PROBLEM, carry on, and maybe you will cause an accident ( More $$ )

- Road rules , again , more Money the worse they drive.

- 6 PM , we all go somewhere, so no helmets are OK, Along with everything else.

- Traffic police, we sit in one spot, and wait for the traffic to come to us. Stagnant Police work.

The traffic here was bad 20 years ago, but today it is incredibly stupid. I view it as a comedy, and refuse to drive at all at certain times and days, due to my experience with the drivers. The POLICE are NOT TO BLAME, they are always at the accidents with their hand out.

"enduring insanity since 1992"

Where are you brother?

Locked in a padded cell in rohng pa-yah-ban Suan Prung with only a computer for company?

[Longstaff]

I'm new to all of this, but live in CM and do the daily Russian Roulette on the roads. Most of the crash scenes I pass by on a weekly basis are completely unfathomable and mostly I think the drivers were probably texting on their phones or otherwise disengaged from the process of driving the car.

My wife had to do a full resit of her license recently because her old one had expired for too long. Now I understand it all, complete clarity...the 'examiner' doesn't even get in the car with you, let alone test you out on public roads, but as long as you can park between a couple of cones you're good to go!

[chinostar]

Hey Governor; what about educating at a young age, enforcing the laws (jumping red lights and cueing up on u-turns where there's no lane, absence of license plates, Rod Dangs ignoring rules and polluting the city, police at each end of the month standing on cross roads collecting fees, bribes etc ect ect ect ect)

Chiang Mai's traffic is getting worse as a cumulation of bad law enforcement, crazy drivers and bad road infrastructure.

[BradinAsia]

Now I live in Chiang Mai and this should be interesting, but I expect it is just going to be another 2 week blitz at the month end for more New Years Booze at the Police Party.

The Mentality here is :

- Do not stop vehicles that run Red Lights, we make more $$ from the accidents they cause sooner or later

- Drunk driving , NO PROBLEM, carry on, and maybe you will cause an accident ( More $$ )

- Road rules , again , more Money the worse they drive.

- 6 PM , we all go somewhere, so no helmets are OK, Along with everything else.

- Traffic police, we sit in one spot, and wait for the traffic to come to us. Stagnant Police work.

The traffic here was bad 20 years ago, but today it is incredibly stupid. I view it as a comedy, and refuse to drive at all at certain times and days, due to my experience with the drivers. The POLICE are NOT TO BLAME, they are always at the accidents with their hand out.

You must live in a different Chiang Mai than the one I live in.

In all my encounters with the police in Chiang Mai, they have always been polite and professional.

Every place I've lived in my 28 yrs in Asia has its own "traffic culture." In my experience, Chiang Mai's traffic

culture (including driver courtesy) is much better than the U.S., India, Pakistan and the Philippines and very

similar to that of Japan. I've encountered very few discourteous drivers here.

You talk about running red lights as if you just arrived last week. The only "running of red lights" that I've ever

seen here is nothing more than the local habit of half dozen drivers squeaking thru the light after it has turned

red. This actually involves very little risk and is a very different thing from flagrantly running thru a red light.

The local folks including long term expats understand & accept this local habit. Don't know why you don't.

There may be drunk drivers here (do you know any country with no drunk drivers?), but I've never seen one,

so it's surely not such a widespread problem as in the U.S., for example.

In Bangkok, I did experience police accepting bribes to "forgive" traffic violations. In Chiang Mai, I've never

experienced this, never seen it or ever heard of anyone else experiencing it. Maybe you learned this on TV.

Chiang Mai -- including the local drivers and the police -- is the nicest place I've ever lived in my 73 yrs. It

seems to me that you brought your negative attitude with you so I doubt you will ever find relief.

Good luck to you in your arduous life.

[CMBob]

In all my encounters with the police in Chiang Mai, they have always been polite and professional.....In Bangkok, I did experience police accepting bribes to "forgive" traffic violations. In Chiang Mai, I've never

experienced this, never seen it or ever heard of anyone else experiencing it. Maybe you learned this on TV.

While I agree with you that I've never had a bad or impolite encounter with any police around here, I have no clue how you have no knowledge of the direct payoffs to the traffic police around here. While I can't speak about the last 90+ days (as things do seem to be changing), it has been absolutely routine around here forever to have a choice - pay the ticket downtown or pay slightly less to the police on the street.

I do always get a chuckle as to how often the local and national governments here in Thailand make some grandiose announcements that they'll solve this or that problem within a 60-90 day time frame, especially given they've never solved just about any problem (traffic, drugs, whatever) over any length of time. It would truly be wonderful to see all drivers stop at pedestrian crossings, all motorcycles staying off the sidewalks, all drivers obeying most of the traffic laws, all drivers required to take a reasonable drivers education course before they're given a license, etc., etc.; however, what's "wonderful" rarely ever has any relation to reality.

Edited December 2, 2014 by CMBob

[cardinalblue]

Bradinasia,

Disagree with you 100% about drivers in CM being more courteous/polite than US drivers. can't address other countries you stated having no experience or knowledge....

I wonder how much driving you really do in CM?

Tailgating, not letting pedestrians cross the street, when signals go out (watch what happens), people running red lights, blocking intersections, changing lanes without looking or signalling, crossing over to another lane when in an intersection, blocking traffic/double parking to run into a store, passing on curves or double/solid lanes, cutting off cyclists and bicyclists..The list goes on and on...

Thais are just terrible about following regulations b/c they just don't know them and moving enforcement doesn't exist in this country....But understanding courtesy/politeness is different than non-compliance..

I know you can't be serious about courtesy and politeness on the roadways here. I hate bitching about Thais this and that but if there is one thing that bothers me the most - it's their driving..

Maybe you can explain why Thailand has the 2nd highest road fatality rate in the world? Incredibly aggressive driving leads to many accidents which Thailand now has a world famous reputation for...

Now don't get me started on Thai driving...

CB

Edited December 2, 2014 by cardinalblue

[masuk]

A certain person states he is doing all he can to bring "happiness back to the people".

As a part of road safety nationwide not just in CM, reducing road noise to some kind of normal (?) level may be a good ingredient in that soup.

Many hundreds if not thousands of motorcycles and other vehicles have incredibly loud exhausts - most sound like they have no baffles

in the exhausts whatsoever as they race through the streets.

Each motorcycle/car/truck with a non factory exhaust - Minimum 300 baht ticket.

The police/gov would immediately have a lot of baht in extra revenue per day. Would it be that difficult to enforce?

AGREED! There are some very noisy bikes which love to hurtle up and down Huay Keow Rd and I've often wondered how they get away with it.

Most other countries would have them off the road in a few days.

The country will have no need to raise VAT if they fine each driver and passenger ฿1000 if they are not wearing a helmet. Police would need to actually patrol the roads in the evening, and see for themselves that 90% of riders do not wear helmets. The police and the Governor must know this, so why allow the unnecessary deaths, brain damage and other injuries just for the lack of get up and go and actually enforce existing laws.

[elektrified]

You must live in a different Chiang Mai than the one I live in.

In all my encounters with the police in Chiang Mai, they have always been polite and professional.

Every place I've lived in my 28 yrs in Asia has its own "traffic culture." In my experience, Chiang Mai's traffic

culture (including driver courtesy) is much better than the U.S., India, Pakistan and the Philippines and very

similar to that of Japan. I've encountered very few discourteous drivers here.

You talk about running red lights as if you just arrived last week. The only "running of red lights" that I've ever

seen here is nothing more than the local habit of half dozen drivers squeaking thru the light after it has turned

red. This actually involves very little risk and is a very different thing from flagrantly running thru a red light.

The local folks including long term expats understand & accept this local habit. Don't know why you don't.

There may be drunk drivers here (do you know any country with no drunk drivers?), but I've never seen one,

so it's surely not such a widespread problem as in the U.S., for example.

In Bangkok, I did experience police accepting bribes to "forgive" traffic violations. In Chiang Mai, I've never

experienced this, never seen it or ever heard of anyone else experiencing it. Maybe you learned this on TV.

Chiang Mai -- including the local drivers and the police -- is the nicest place I've ever lived in my 73 yrs. It

seems to me that you brought your negative attitude with you so I doubt you will ever find relief.

Good luck to you in your arduous life.

Hmmm.....unbelievable post. It's O.K. to run red lights and it "involves very little risk". Better to drive here than in the USA..... Very few discourteous drivers...Never seen a drunk driver here and on and on. There is no way that you could live in Thailand and say these things.

FG over to you!

Edited December 2, 2014 by elektrified

[true blue]

think what brad in asia is trying to say drivers in cnx have there own special road code,and it seems to work to some extent 8 years of driving on chaing mai rds in a car does make me agree with some of his points,some are not true but tit.

[Traveler19491]

Bradinasia,

Disagree with you 100% about drivers in CM being more courteous/polite than US drivers. can't address other countries you stated having no experience or knowledge....

I wonder how much driving you really do in CM?

Tailgating, not letting pedestrians cross the street, when signals go out (watch what happens), people running red lights, blocking intersections, changing lanes without looking or signalling, crossing over to another lane when in an intersection, blocking traffic/double parking to run into a store, passing on curves or double/solid lanes, cutting off cyclists and bicyclists..The list goes on and on...

Thais are just terrible about following regulations b/c they just don't know them and moving enforcement doesn't exist in this country....But understanding courtesy/politeness is different than non-compliance..

I know you can't be serious about courtesy and politeness on the roadways here. I hate bitching about Thais this and that but if there is one thing that bothers me the most - it's their driving..

Maybe you can explain why Thailand has the 2nd highest road fatality rate in the world? Incredibly aggressive driving leads to many accidents which Thailand now has a world famous reputation for...

Now don't get me started on Thai driving...

CB

I have to agree with you 100%. I love living in Thailand, and especially in Chiang Mai, but the one thing that does annoy me is the total lack of driving skills (forget highway courtesy) demonstrated by Thais. Complete lack of attention to what they're doing, straddling lanes, passing on curves/solid lines, changing lanes without looking, emerging from side streets without looking, forcing you out of their way...it's truly pathetic. IMHO, one thing that would ease congestion in CM...enforce driving licenses. Probably half or more of Thais don't even have a license. Start checking, and hit them with a large fine, and you'd soon see 25-35% less traffic, at least until they started getting licenses. Sorry, but Thais just don't have a clue when it comes to driving.

[sfokevin]

I would suggest taking money out of the equation... Instead of a fine for no helmet - Take their license away and they don't get it back until they take the 4 hour road training class and pass the written test that all new licensee have to take ;-)

Edited December 2, 2014 by sfokevin

[FrankOff]

Maybe you can explain why Thailand has the 2nd highest road fatality rate in the world? Incredibly aggressive driving leads to many accidents which Thailand now has a world famous reputation for...

.....try driving in India,buddy!..... At least Thais use their signal lights often and the city speeds are low.

The worst thing is the "me-first' mentality which obviously goes along with the utter lack of courtesy in general. Bangkok drivers are very selfish and stay back or quickly pass drivers from Lumpoon or Lampang,notoriously bad drivers for some weird reason.

Cops?...hands-out..everyones knows that,don't they?

[BradinAsia]

You must live in a different Chiang Mai than the one I live in.

In all my encounters with the police in Chiang Mai, they have always been polite and professional.

Every place I've lived in my 28 yrs in Asia has its own "traffic culture." In my experience, Chiang Mai's traffic

culture (including driver courtesy) is much better than the U.S., India, Pakistan and the Philippines and very

similar to that of Japan. I've encountered very few discourteous drivers here.

You talk about running red lights as if you just arrived last week. The only "running of red lights" that I've ever

seen here is nothing more than the local habit of half dozen drivers squeaking thru the light after it has turned

red. This actually involves very little risk and is a very different thing from flagrantly running thru a red light.

The local folks including long term expats understand & accept this local habit. Don't know why you don't.

There may be drunk drivers here (do you know any country with no drunk drivers?), but I've never seen one,

so it's surely not such a widespread problem as in the U.S., for example.

In Bangkok, I did experience police accepting bribes to "forgive" traffic violations. In Chiang Mai, I've never

experienced this, never seen it or ever heard of anyone else experiencing it. Maybe you learned this on TV.

Chiang Mai -- including the local drivers and the police -- is the nicest place I've ever lived in my 73 yrs. It

seems to me that you brought your negative attitude with you so I doubt you will ever find relief.

Good luck to you in your arduous life.

Hmmm.....unbelievable post. It's O.K. to run red lights and it "involves very little risk". Better to drive here than in the USA..... Very few discourteous drivers...Never seen a drunk driver here and on and on. There is no way that you could live in Thailand and say these things.

FG over to you!

You are obviously one of those folks who are disgruntled bcoz Thais don't think and act like folks in your home country.

Think about this big major issue of "running red lights." In my country and probably in yours, folks often squeak through

the light on yellow, and sometimes (God forbid) even stretch that just a bit into the red. In Thailand they simply stretch that

just a bit further -- and often 6 or 8 vehicles squeak thru even after the light has turned red.

Everybody but you and a few stiff-necked grouches understands this and accepts it as a very simple and practical way of

expediting traffic flow. Since everyone is accustomed to this and accepts it, it creates very little risk. The opposing traffic

simply waits a bit. Everybody is cool and there's no damage done to anyone.

It is merely the difference in mindset.

Obviously, you (and some other TVers) see traffic laws as something etched in stone -- if you violate these sacred decrees

you deserve to be arrested and hauled off to jail. "How can any society survive if they don't strictly enforce their traffic laws?"

Where in blue blazes did that idea come from anyway?

In the U.S., traffic enforcement involves just such a hard-line approach and the highway patrol in 50 states issues thousands

and thousand of speeding tickets every day.

Question 1: Is this actually intended to make roads safer? The answer: Absolutely not, it is intended as a cash cow to help the

local governments balance their (often bloated) budgets.

Question 2: Does this strict enforcement in fact make roads safer? Answer: No, U.S. traffic death rates are more than twice as

high as those of Germany and Japan where they do not resort to such draconian methods of traffic law enforcement.

During my 16 years living, working and driving in Japan I got 2 speeding tickets and 2 parking tickets. That's about my average

for one month driving in the U.S. In Japan, the police very seldom give speeding tickets except in specific areas which have had

a spate of accidents due to speeding -- a reasonable, practical and more effective approach to traffic safety.

In Thailand, a traffic light is sometimes placed at pedestrian crosswalks where there is no intersection. Chiang Mai has several

of these. I find it quite interesting that Thais take a very practical approach to these traffic lights. Invariably, a pedestrian pushes

the button, traffic stops, the pedestrian crosses and the vehicles promptly continue on their way not waiting for the green light.

If this were the U.S. the cops would have a hay day -- "You're breaking the law!" -- and they'd be making a ton of money for the

local governments. The Thai approach is much more reasonable and practical. I just imagine that the average intelligent Thai sees

traffic laws not actually as laws, but as a basic set of rules that need to be applied with common sense.

To many westerners, common sense has no place in law. If you violate the law for whatever reason and in whatever situation,

you are a law-breaker and deserve no mercy.

CMFarang, you say, "There is no way that you could live in Thailand and say these things."

A total of 29 years driving in the U.S. and 28 years in Asia. During 6 years in the Philippines I encountered a lot of wild drivers

and some discourteous ones. During 16 years in Japan I encountered very few wild and discourteous drivers other than a few

motorcyclists.

I don't know where you live, but I drive 1,200-1,500 km per month in and around Chiang Mai. The number of wild or discourteous

drivers I have encountered here is very similar to that of driving in Japan. Also, I see few ​traffic accidents in Chiang Mai -- maybe

on average no more than one per week.

All I can say is -- you see things very differently -- maybe it's your outlook...

[elektrified]

Sorry BradinAsia, I couldn't disagree more. I believe all the people running red lights should be ticketed 1000 Baht each, and after the 3rd offense lose their driving privileges. They put me and my child at risk every day I am behind the wheel of my car.

"Everybody but you and a few stiff-necked grouches understands this and accepts it as a very simple and practical way of

expediting traffic flow. Since everyone is accustomed to this and accepts it, it creates very little risk. The opposing traffic

simply waits a bit. Everybody is cool and there's no damage done to anyone." What a load of rubbish. The Thais I know freak out when people do this. Not every one is accustomed to this dangerous practice. And it creates HUGE risk as many of these people kill and maim others every day in Thailand. Just watch the news.

Maybe you don't see any accidents but I have seen more accidents and dead bodies, as a result thereof, over the last 8-9 years than I have seen since I began driving in the 1970's. I've probably seen more than 12 people killed on Thai roads (4 in one car when a Bangkok taxi driver flipped the car an hour North of Bangkok.) I've seen dead students/young people laying next to their smashed up motorcycles many times. Thailand is a VERY dangerous place to drive and Thai drivers are the worst and most discourteous I have ever seen. I've been in 3 accidents here (none of which was my fault).

Take off your rose coloured glasses.

[CMFarang]

Bradinasia

Your just trolling for an argument, right ?

How often are you out at night, after 9pm ?

Have you ever seen a vehicle stopped for a traffic violation?

Do you speak thai and question the locals about the habits of the police and the drivers?

I do not care where you have lived or driven, we are discussing chiang mai here, in which i hsve lived for 19 years.

Sure the cops are courteous, but know nothing themselves about roadvsafety (85% ?)

Drivers from every locale in northern thailand, each with different technics on the road.

Accidents are constant.

Just go sit at the east end of Narrowat bridge at 10 pm and watch the redvlights be ignored.

You have not seen what i hsve or understnd why it happens, that is obvious.

Enjoy oblivion.

[Benmart]

check tax, cash,

check helmet, cash,

parking clamp tow, cash...

You will still see the police riding with no helmet and running red lights. Until they lead by example it is just a revenue ploy.

Right or policeman with his boy behind him without an helmet;

photo shot a few days ago on Huai_Kaeo Thanon ( the road to go to Doi_Suthep ) not far from MAYA complex

A uniform does not necessarily indicate professionalism and ability. There are plenty of BIB that seem unaware that the poor image they project is abundantly obvious to those they serve.

This person wearing, what appears to the a RTP uniform, is in need of retraining.

[Benmart]

You must live in a different Chiang Mai than the one I live in.

In all my encounters with the police in Chiang Mai, they have always been polite and professional.

Every place I've lived in my 28 yrs in Asia has its own "traffic culture." In my experience, Chiang Mai's traffic

culture (including driver courtesy) is much better than the U.S., India, Pakistan and the Philippines and very

similar to that of Japan. I've encountered very few discourteous drivers here.

You talk about running red lights as if you just arrived last week. The only "running of red lights" that I've ever

seen here is nothing more than the local habit of half dozen drivers squeaking thru the light after it has turned

red. This actually involves very little risk and is a very different thing from flagrantly running thru a red light.

The local folks including long term expats understand & accept this local habit. Don't know why you don't.

There may be drunk drivers here (do you know any country with no drunk drivers?), but I've never seen one,

so it's surely not such a widespread problem as in the U.S., for example.

In Bangkok, I did experience police accepting bribes to "forgive" traffic violations. In Chiang Mai, I've never

experienced this, never seen it or ever heard of anyone else experiencing it. Maybe you learned this on TV.

Chiang Mai -- including the local drivers and the police -- is the nicest place I've ever lived in my 73 yrs. It

seems to me that you brought your negative attitude with you so I doubt you will ever find relief.

Good luck to you in your arduous life.

Hmmm.....unbelievable post. It's O.K. to run red lights and it "involves very little risk". Better to drive here than in the USA..... Very few discourteous drivers...Never seen a drunk driver here and on and on. There is no way that you could live in Thailand and say these things.

FG over to you!

You are obviously one of those folks who are disgruntled bcoz Thais don't think and act like folks in your home country.

Think about this big major issue of "running red lights." In my country and probably in yours, folks often squeak through

the light on yellow, and sometimes (God forbid) even stretch that just a bit into the red. In Thailand they simply stretch that

just a bit further -- and often 6 or 8 vehicles squeak thru even after the light has turned red.

Everybody but you and a few stiff-necked grouches understands this and accepts it as a very simple and practical way of

expediting traffic flow. Since everyone is accustomed to this and accepts it, it creates very little risk. The opposing traffic

simply waits a bit. Everybody is cool and there's no damage done to anyone.

It is merely the difference in mindset.

Obviously, you (and some other TVers) see traffic laws as something etched in stone -- if you violate these sacred decrees

you deserve to be arrested and hauled off to jail. "How can any society survive if they don't strictly enforce their traffic laws?"

Where in blue blazes did that idea come from anyway?

In the U.S., traffic enforcement involves just such a hard-line approach and the highway patrol in 50 states issues thousands

and thousand of speeding tickets every day.

Question 1: Is this actually intended to make roads safer? The answer: Absolutely not, it is intended as a cash cow to help the

local governments balance their (often bloated) budgets.

Question 2: Does this strict enforcement in fact make roads safer? Answer: No, U.S. traffic death rates are more than twice as

high as those of Germany and Japan where they do not resort to such draconian methods of traffic law enforcement.

During my 16 years living, working and driving in Japan I got 2 speeding tickets and 2 parking tickets. That's about my average

for one month driving in the U.S. In Japan, the police very seldom give speeding tickets except in specific areas which have had

a spate of accidents due to speeding -- a reasonable, practical and more effective approach to traffic safety.

In Thailand, a traffic light is sometimes placed at pedestrian crosswalks where there is no intersection. Chiang Mai has several

of these. I find it quite interesting that Thais take a very practical approach to these traffic lights. Invariably, a pedestrian pushes

the button, traffic stops, the pedestrian crosses and the vehicles promptly continue on their way not waiting for the green light.

If this were the U.S. the cops would have a hay day -- "You're breaking the law!" -- and they'd be making a ton of money for the

local governments. The Thai approach is much more reasonable and practical. I just imagine that the average intelligent Thai sees

traffic laws not actually as laws, but as a basic set of rules that need to be applied with common sense.

To many westerners, common sense has no place in law. If you violate the law for whatever reason and in whatever situation,

you are a law-breaker and deserve no mercy.

CMFarang, you say, "There is no way that you could live in Thailand and say these things."

A total of 29 years driving in the U.S. and 28 years in Asia. During 6 years in the Philippines I encountered a lot of wild drivers

and some discourteous ones. During 16 years in Japan I encountered very few wild and discourteous drivers other than a few

motorcyclists.

I don't know where you live, but I drive 1,200-1,500 km per month in and around Chiang Mai. The number of wild or discourteous

drivers I have encountered here is very similar to that of driving in Japan. Also, I see few ​traffic accidents in Chiang Mai -- maybe

on average no more than one per week.

All I can say is -- you see things very differently -- maybe it's your outlook...

For every ticket I issued, I gave three or four warnings on average. Good policing is educating the driving public and not just writing tickets. Such generalize statements about the highway patrol are inaccurate and baseless IMO.

Progress is inevitable and having been coming to Thailand for 20+ years, I can see improvements in driving habits. What seems not to change are the generalizations made by some posters.

[Berkshire]

All these people complaining about lack of enforcement will be the first to complain when they get ticketed for a minor infraction. That's why I prefer driving in Thailand over driving in the USA.

[Berkshire]

All I can say is -- you see things very differently -- maybe it's your outlook...

I'm with you Brad. These whiners/whingers are not particularly honest in their criticism. Not ALL Thai drivers are bad, just a small minority. Yes, there are a few crazy drivers out there--just like anywhere else--but most are not. On any given day, I may run into one or two serious d**kheads...and that's out of several hundred that I share the road with. Why can't these whiners/whingers be a little more honest in their assessment?

[BradinAsia]

You are obviously one of those folks who are disgruntled bcoz Thais don't think and act like folks in your home country.

Think about this big major issue of "running red lights." In my country and probably in yours, folks often squeak through

the light on yellow, and sometimes (God forbid) even stretch that just a bit into the red. In Thailand they simply stretch that

just a bit further -- and often 6 or 8 vehicles squeak thru even after the light has turned red.

Everybody but you and a few stiff-necked grouches understands this and accepts it as a very simple and practical way of

expediting traffic flow. Since everyone is accustomed to this and accepts it, it creates very little risk. The opposing traffic

simply waits a bit. Everybody is cool and there's no damage done to anyone.

It is merely the difference in mindset.

Obviously, you (and some other TVers) see traffic laws as something etched in stone -- if you violate these sacred decrees

you deserve to be arrested and hauled off to jail. "How can any society survive if they don't strictly enforce their traffic laws?"

Where in blue blazes did that idea come from anyway?

In the U.S., traffic enforcement involves just such a hard-line approach and the highway patrol in 50 states issues thousands

and thousand of speeding tickets every day.

Question 1: Is this actually intended to make roads safer? The answer: Absolutely not, it is intended as a cash cow to help the

local governments balance their (often bloated) budgets.

Question 2: Does this strict enforcement in fact make roads safer? Answer: No, U.S. traffic death rates are more than twice as

high as those of Germany and Japan where they do not resort to such draconian methods of traffic law enforcement.

During my 16 years living, working and driving in Japan I got 2 speeding tickets and 2 parking tickets. That's about my average

for one month driving in the U.S. In Japan, the police very seldom give speeding tickets except in specific areas which have had

a spate of accidents due to speeding -- a reasonable, practical and more effective approach to traffic safety.

In Thailand, a traffic light is sometimes placed at pedestrian crosswalks where there is no intersection. Chiang Mai has several

of these. I find it quite interesting that Thais take a very practical approach to these traffic lights. Invariably, a pedestrian pushes

the button, traffic stops, the pedestrian crosses and the vehicles promptly continue on their way not waiting for the green light.

If this were the U.S. the cops would have a hay day -- "You're breaking the law!" -- and they'd be making a ton of money for the

local governments. The Thai approach is much more reasonable and practical. I just imagine that the average intelligent Thai sees

traffic laws not actually as laws, but as a basic set of rules that need to be applied with common sense.

To many westerners, common sense has no place in law. If you violate the law for whatever reason and in whatever situation,

you are a law-breaker and deserve no mercy.

CMFarang, you say, "There is no way that you could live in Thailand and say these things."

A total of 29 years driving in the U.S. and 28 years in Asia. During 6 years in the Philippines I encountered a lot of wild drivers

and some discourteous ones. During 16 years in Japan I encountered very few wild and discourteous drivers other than a few

motorcyclists.

I don't know where you live, but I drive 1,200-1,500 km per month in and around Chiang Mai. The number of wild or discourteous

drivers I have encountered here is very similar to that of driving in Japan. Also, I see few ​traffic accidents in Chiang Mai -- maybe

on average no more than one per week.

All I can say is -- you see things very differently -- maybe it's your outlook...

For every ticket I issued, I gave three or four warnings on average. Good policing is educating the driving public and not just writing tickets. Such generalize statements about the highway patrol are inaccurate and baseless IMO.

Progress is inevitable and having been coming to Thailand for 20+ years, I can see improvements in driving habits. What seems not to change are the generalizations made by some posters.

Benmart, I agree with you that we cannot make generalized statements about highway patrol officers.

I neglected to mention that the experiences I related about driving in the U.S. were from 1966-1992. Have been gone from there since.

Also, police behavior tended to vary from region to region. While serving in the U.S. Air Force, I had very good experiences with police

in Syracuse, NY and was treated very deplorably by police in San Antonio, Tx.

Ohio was half-way between those extremes. The highway patrol and local police in western Ohio were heavily focused on ticketing

millions of travelers on I-75 to make tons of money for the local governments. They were almost always very polite and professional.

It was not their fault that they were tasked by their superiors to perpetrate a total farce not related to highway safety.

For this, we of course, cannot really fault the individual police officer, the fault lies the system of local government that we allow to

perpetrate this hoax on the public -- the abuse of power in traffic law enforcement for fraudulent purposes.

The average 10-yr-old can see thru this hoax.