If you approach a red light and the left lane has a solid white line running through it and on past the red light for 100m then punch the throttle n go through it on red.

If you dont believe me then stop in that lane on red and look in your rear view mirror at the banzai warrior racing up behind you with main beam and horn on.....up to you.....

Sounds like most of you guys making comments here have never been up country. The OP was talking about T junctions where he is on the through road. i.e. not turning left or right. Most regional towns that are big enough to have a set of lights will often let the cars in the left lane (assuming a multi lane road) continue through the red light while vehicles from the cross road turn into the right hand lane. Mostly just local rules and knowledge. Not in the official rule book. Two in my neck of the woods.

Just don't stop unless you really have to.

You may proceed through when there's a solid line dividing the left most lane and the intersection.

Having been instructed many time by my wife ... understanding is ...

You may turn left at a T Junction or a Crossroads ... even when the lights are RED but only when it is safe to do so AND there is either the sign in Thai that says you can OR the sign in Thai that says you can and a Blue turn left arrow. If you have an accident doing this, assumption is that you are at fault

If there is neither then quite often drivers turn left there but it is actually illegal.

Sorry I don't know about the white lines on the road that you mention.

Thanks for the info, but I am referring to GOING STRAIGHT THRU an intersection where the light is red.

Nah you can't do that.

If you see someone else doing it, you can too!

Are you talking about being in the left lane approaching a junction that only has a right turn option ?

Therefore, when the lights are red, the leftmost lane can proceed straight through even though cars are merging from the right ?

I think he is!

Care to advise him and all of us?

I always thought traffic lights were only there as suggestions.... Now i am totally confused for sure.....

Sounds like most of you guys making comments here have never been up country. The OP was talking about T junctions where he is on the through road. i.e. not turning left or right. Most regional towns that are big enough to have a set of lights will often let the cars in the left lane (assuming a multi lane road) continue through the red light while vehicles from the cross road turn into the right hand lane. Mostly just local rules and knowledge. Not in the official rule book. Two in my neck of the woods.

Agree. Quite common in regional cities. Its permitted to cross the top of the T in the left lane at some but not all T intersections when the light is red. There's usually a small blue sign with an arrow pointing straight ahead but i've noticed the signs aren't always a standard design.

Only through the far LH lane ? on the red light. In Pattaya its not unusaul to see the other 2 LH lanes used the same way on the red light.

There is actually a regulation stating that you can only turn left on red if you have a sign indicating that you can do so or a traffic light showing an arrow to the left. If you do stop on what is generally considered the lane for people turning left, you may get someone indicating that you should move. In a polite Thai way of course. I don't even look for these signs any more, I just try to get there safely. There is one junction I know on a three lane highway with a T-junction to the right. People (including me) just sail over it on red. They recently put in an additional traffic light on the left hand lane which is also being ignored. I never saw an accident there and I go through 4 times a day.

I think the OP is talking about a junction like the one below. The first time I approached this junction the lights were at red and the GF told me to stay in the left lane and go straight through. Needless to say I continued to slow down and started to question her. The guy in front of me pulled into the left hand lane and continued straight through so I followed him. You will see the white line in the left lane continues through the junction. I have done this a few times at this junction now but I still slow down and look for traffic coming from the right. You can see the lorry pulling out from the right in this picture. If I saw that coming I would definitely be giving way.

Junction.png

Edit: After posting I noticed that you could mistake the far left lane as one of the small lanes at the side of the road that scooters use. It is in fact the first of four lanes and there is a straight on arrow painted on the road that is out of shot.

Yes MW72 thanks for the picture to illustrate.

it pretty simple really. you have to stop unless there is a farang trying to cross the road.

If you approach a red light and the left lane has a solid white line running through it and on past the red light for 100m then punch the throttle n go through it on red.

If you dont believe me then stop in that lane on red and look in your rear view mirror at the banzai warrior racing up behind you with main beam and horn on.....up to you.....

You're dead right there Tom.

If in doubt go through, or move to the second lane and stop for the red.

I well recall the Tai/Suk intersection and seeing a Russian and his GF stop their scooter in the centre of the left lane. About 15 bikes whizzed past him but it wasn't until the concrete truck rolled past at a million miles an hour with the horn blasting that he got a bit phased. The draft nearly took them off the bike. Luckily the truck was able to split the lanes otherwise they would have been roadkill.

An example of these are on Sukhumvit Rd heading east through T intersections that merge with even numbered sois (eg Soi 26). The far left lane may proceed on a red light with caution, but the rule is you must still give way. So yo may proceed, but if there is an accident, you are at fault.

To come back to the original topic

It was about going straight through on red on the leftmost lane at a T-section.

I personally know one and only one T-section where this is allowed (out of Khon Kaen highway 12 westward opposite the university.

There it is clearly allowed by a special sign and a continuous white line!

There are four lanes in one direction. On the leftmost you can go straight through.

I doubt that there is a general rule for all such T-sections.

Ofttopic: turning left on red. Yaawn!

Allowed when not explicitely forbidden.

The signs that forbid it are often in Thai script only.

A good money maker for police when unknowing farangs turn left

BTW: this is the T-section that I know:

https://goo.gl/maps/XInz9

Move on and you see the continuous white line.

Text in Thai says something like "left lane passthrough anytime".

I tend to follow the locals and hope any waiting police cannot see in time through the glass that I am farang. otherwise you end up like a lemon, for example yesterday I actually stopped at one of the pedestrian crossing lights for the full 20 seconds or so it was on red whilst every other car just zoomed across. Woe betide any coach loads of Japanese swimmers trying to cross, or not, as they don't use the crossings anyhow. I am told in Pattaya there are some favourite haunts for the police to stop unsuspecting drivers turning left: namely Second Road and Pattaya Klang and Third Road and Pattaya Tai. On Sukhumvit at some lights where there is no left turn drivers seem to go across the lights in the inside lanes so I follow suit. So far I have been lucky but I type that tempting fate.

unsuspecting drivers turning left: namely Second Road and Pattaya Klang and Third Road and Pattaya Tai.

No more excuse, at least for those with basic English knowledge

There is some basic description in English nowadays.

But Second and Klang was a popular trap in the past (Thai script only).

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You can turn left when there is no sign telling you not to. I started to notice these signs appearing about a year ago. The are in Thai and bad English which reads something like "No turn left waiting for light"

Your wrong! ThAT SIGN IS telling you not to turn when there is a red light!

unsuspecting drivers turning left: namely Second Road and Pattaya Klang and Third Road and Pattaya Tai.

No more excuse, at least for those with basic English knowledge

There is some basic description in English nowadays.

But Second and Klang was a popular trap in the past (Thai script only).

The English wording at 2nd and Klang is a lot clearer and I agree with you. However at 3rd and Klang the English translation says "Turn left waiting light" and with either basic or advanced English knowledge most would think it is ok to turn - I made the mistake 2 years ago As BSJ says you cannot turn there.

When I was fined it was 400 baht payable at Soi 9 station - has it gone up to 1000 baht now?

When the light is red and there's not a Blue and White sign stating you can turn left in red light ONLY when it's clear

If in doubt, wait for green... Simples

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You can turn left when there is no sign telling you not to. I started to notice these signs appearing about a year ago. The are in Thai and bad English which reads something like "No turn left waiting for light"

Your wrong! ThAT SIGN IS telling you not to turn when there is a red light!

unsuspecting drivers turning left: namely Second Road and Pattaya Klang and Third Road and Pattaya Tai.

No more excuse, at least for those with basic English knowledge

There is some basic description in English nowadays.

But Second and Klang was a popular trap in the past (Thai script only).

The English wording at 2nd and Klang is a lot clearer and I agree with you. However at 3rd and Klang the English translation says "Turn left waiting light" and with either basic or advanced English knowledge most would think it is ok to turn - I made the mistake 2 years ago As BSJ says you cannot turn there.

When I was fined it was 400 baht payable at Soi 9 station - has it gone up to 1000 baht now?

Isn't the color/shape a clue to what the sign is meaning.

RED=FORBIDDEN almost always STOP.

BLUE=WARNING or GUIDANCE.

VERTICAL RECTANGLE=REGULATION.

HORIZONTAL RECTANGLE=GUIDANCE.