Thai Drivers Do the Darnedest Things

[2fishin2]

@1BADDAT, @2fishin2

Really, this is the mentality you drive around in Thailand with?

So there's a bunch of motorsai sitting at the front of the red light queue, it starts raining. You're not satisfied unless they all get soaking wet - including all the mothers and children, while you sit in your nice & dry car, for the sake of a few seconds? These are people too - just one's not as fortunate as you, to be able to afford a car.

I wish you luck in our country - I think you need all you can get.

Actually, no, I wish you can learn that what sits on a motorsai are actual people, and that the road isn't yours alone, and that green doesn't mean "go" it means "proceed when safe" etc etc.

There are road rules, regulations, laws and I follow them. I dont tolerate people who think they have the right to do whatever they want, its dangerous. You are right they are getting wet. Thats such a bad thing..... While Im at it wait a minute I have an incoming call I need to answer driving 50kph or a line message I have to answer NOW while on my motorbike.

[1BADDAT]

@1BADDAT, @2fishin2

Really, this is the mentality you drive around in Thailand with?

So there's a bunch of motorsai sitting at the front of the red light queue, it starts raining. You're not satisfied unless they all get soaking wet - including all the mothers and children, while you sit in your nice & dry car, for the sake of a few seconds? These are people too - just one's not as fortunate as you, to be able to afford a car.

I wish you luck in our country - I think you need all you can get.

Actually, no, I wish you can learn that what sits on a motorsai are actual people, and that the road isn't yours alone, and that green doesn't mean "go" it means "proceed when safe" etc etc.

Our country? You are Thai?

I own a motorcycle. If I was in the situation, I would pull over to the side and put my jacket on. Why, because the people behind me are actual people too. The people I just got in front of 15 seconds ago. You know, the ones who are fortunate enough to own cars. I am courteous enough to think about other people around me. I am a courteous person and an impatient driver. That wont change regardless of where I live.

[2fishin2]

@1BADDAT, @2fishin2

Really, this is the mentality you drive around in Thailand with?

So there's a bunch of motorsai sitting at the front of the red light queue, it starts raining. You're not satisfied unless they all get soaking wet - including all the mothers and children, while you sit in your nice & dry car, for the sake of a few seconds? These are people too - just one's not as fortunate as you, to be able to afford a car.

I wish you luck in our country - I think you need all you can get.

Actually, no, I wish you can learn that what sits on a motorsai are actual people, and that the road isn't yours alone, and that green doesn't mean "go" it means "proceed when safe" etc etc.

Our country? You are Thai?

I own a motorcycle. If I was in the situation, I would pull over to the side and put my jacket on. Why, because the people behind me are actual people too. The people I just got in front of 15 seconds ago. You know, the ones who are fortunate enough to own cars. I am courteous enough to think about other people around me. I am a courteous person and an impatient driver. That wont change regardless of where I live.

I agree. My simple philosophy is I follow the rules and do not infringe on another person because of my selfishness or buffoonery.

Common sense says I dont stop in the middle of the road at a busy intersection, hold up traffic in order to put on a rain poncho.

But there are just as many selfish farangs here I acknowledge that also. Just yesterday at a Tesco parking lot a farang in a Benz pulled into the parking lot and parked at an angle taking up 2 parking spots.

[WarpSpeed]

@1BADDAT, @2fishin2

Really, this is the mentality you drive around in Thailand with?

So there's a bunch of motorsai sitting at the front of the red light queue, it starts raining. You're not satisfied unless they all get soaking wet - including all the mothers and children, while you sit in your nice & dry car, for the sake of a few seconds? These are people too - just one's not as fortunate as you, to be able to afford a car.

I wish you luck in our country - I think you need all you can get.

Actually, no, I wish you can learn that what sits on a motorsai are actual people, and that the road isn't yours alone, and that green doesn't mean "go" it means "proceed when safe" etc etc.

Our country? You are Thai?

I own a motorcycle. If I was in the situation, I would pull over to the side and put my jacket on. Why, because the people behind me are actual people too. The people I just got in front of 15 seconds ago. You know, the ones who are fortunate enough to own cars. I am courteous enough to think about other people around me. I am a courteous person and an impatient driver. That wont change regardless of where I live.

Yes, he is Thai..

[EmptyHead]

It is hilarious.

they are so concerned with someone getting in front of them and driving bumper to bumper, but not even doing it slowly.

In the past 3 months, i must have seen a dozen rear-endings in a traffic jams crawling at less than 5km per hour.

[WarpSpeed]

Its starting to rain all you cars behind me at the traffic light can wait until I get me 19baht plastic tarp on.....says the herd of Thai motorbike riders at a green light

Not a very good example mate. "Share the road" doesn't just mean make some space, it extends into having some empathy too

So we should be empathetic to the people that go to the front of the line and then make us wait longer?

I don't disagree with this. I never said I did, nor many of your other pet peeves noted, I do disagree with your generalized assessment that it doesn't happen elsewhere like the US, I particularly despise the motorcycle lane sharing law that is apparently ok in places like Ca. not where I live thankfully, I think it's absolutely senseless, besides being extraordinarily dangerous it is a menace and distraction to drivers in cars in terms of possibly hitting a cycle that suddenly appears, cars can't maneuver like motorcycles and it does slow down all traffic just like it does in Thailand. Down town in rush hour traffic the scooters are so thick at the front of the line at every light that only a couple of cars get through the quick lights and on to the next one where they block that one up too by moving in front of the cars and they bunch up and keep the cars from even moving when the light turns green, that is a massive frustration and dangerous as well, usually revving the engine before the light turns green clears me a nice lane to advance, something abut more difficult to do with an automatic, fortunately I always drive a manual.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slMhgcwSqeM

Then she rides in the car pool lane?? Talking about doing it safely? There is no way to do it safely after talking about her own incident of going down before as well (no, not that kind of going down)..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kz4ZGqfwNEM

You can find these all day long, the second rider was really lucky the first riders bike didn't take him out as well, I don't understand how this practice is legal, what legislators had so little brains as to allow this and besides there are speed limits they have to be exceeding to even do this if the traffic is traveling the limit. The victims here are the car drivers the cyclists are just idiots, (I know that'll get me some irritated responses but I expect that, the videos speak for themselves. [but] we are talking places like Ca. where idiocy abounds so I guess anything's possible they even permit parents the choice on whether or not to vaccinate their children against dangerous diseases but that's for another debate.

I find it more irritating in the states because drivers here are supposed to know and practice better etiquette because we have laws that are enforced and better drivers training and I find it really irritating when the street etiquette is violated by some who feels more entitled but in Thailand I go with the flow understanding the environment in which I'm operating my vehicle, knowing also that I'm less likely to get pulled over for something nonsensical while so many around me are driving as mindlessly as they do.

Edited March 7, 2015 by WarpSpeed

[1BADDAT]

Its starting to rain all you cars behind me at the traffic light can wait until I get me 19baht plastic tarp on.....says the herd of Thai motorbike riders at a green light

Not a very good example mate. "Share the road" doesn't just mean make some space, it extends into having some empathy too

So we should be empathetic to the people that go to the front of the line and then make us wait longer?

I don't disagree with this. I never said I did, nor many of your other pet peeves noted, I do disagree with your generalized assessment that it doesn't happen elsewhere like the US

You are replying to me you but you didn't have anything to do with the discussion above.

There are more differences driving in usa and thailand than similarities. I see stupid things there too but they are way different than I see here in thailand. In Oakland drivers illegally block off major highways to perform rap video like performances called sideshows. You think that has ever happened in thailand? Face the facts that thailand is unique. In its drivers, it's landscape, food, women..etc. Unique is good. If if was the same as any place else I might as well be any place else.

[WarpSpeed]

You have this incredibly skewed way of looking at a public forum, I don't need to be part of the discussion to include myself any more then you do..

[LarryBird]

Warp, if you think drivers are the same in the US as they are in Thailand, why are Thailand's driving statistics so much worse, (while at the same time, the Thai driving stats are more likely to be underestimated..)

[WarpSpeed]

Once again another person attempting to put words into my posts that don't exist. I never said they're the same I'd appreciate that quote please? I have only said that neither you nor the other person obsessed with proving a moot point, that you can't generalize across the board towards ALL Thai's related to the 'superior driving skills' of Americans or any other similar country as has been done..

The ignorance, lack of courtesy or consideration displayed here daily (the US) and in deed by the minute by drivers is far more irritating then there BECAUSE I expect more from a driving population that has been part of driving since it's origins. It's like comparing adult drivers with teenagers, after driving a number of decades one should be able, and in deed expected to drive better, that's hardly the case here, but when I'm there I expect no more since I see them as teen drivers in their driving evolution while I have decades of skills both on and off the track to draw on. Therefore I drive and act accordingly and I find that far more liberating as I don't have the same expectations of the drivers so I'm never let down from exceedingly high expectations.

(DELETED - not Thai related)

Edited March 8, 2015 by seedy

[lostinisaan]

I always set my left blinker, when I turn right and Vice Versa. I always do 130 km/h and take over on the other lane, give them a sign in form of my high beamers to piss off, because I'm a VIP with a small (DELETED - language).

I usually don't wait for red lights, as they're made for the ordinary folks. I park my car wherever I want to, preferable where it's most annoying for others.

Why is freaking everybody driving on my- the fast- lane? I flash my lights until the guy in front of me pees his pants, or i just take over on the other road, not even looking for traffic that could cause a terrible accident.

I see there's a traffic jam, but hell no, I'll never ever let somebody drive out, that he's faster at his Mia Noi's place, than I am.

Those ' motorbikes without lights at night are annoying. From time to time, I just push one off the road and jell at him, or her. If she's good looking, I might stop and take her home and she can give me a massage..

I'm always pissed when I see those "farang" driving around in my country. Many of them stop right in front of me, when the damn traffic light has just turned red. I usually follow them, call all my mates, tell them to hop into their cars, or on their fancy motorbikes with bicycle tires on and when the guy stops, we beat the out of that ignorant guy.

Do you really think that I'm that stupid to pay 500 baht for a damn driver's license? I'm smarter than anyone else on the road and always have 200 baht for the cops, close to my seat.

That's what I do when I'm driving in my Honda Civic, you should see me when I sit on my truck.............

[seedy]

Two Post Deleted

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[Keesters]

Live update. Motorbike with side cart and three kids in it driving 10km/h on highway in the righlt lane. The hat comes off the kid's head. What happened next?

He stops. Reversing slowly to the hat. Just passed them so not sure what happened!

Motorcycles don't have reverse gear. Would he have pushed it back, I doubt it. Seen instances like this many times and passenger always, especially a kid, runs back to retrieve what's been lost.

[Keesters]

Here's one for you:

'Car, tuck whatever - Got to turn left soon but let me overtake that motorcycle first then cut in front of him to make the turn forcing him to slow down and shit his pants.'

[Asheron]

After pondering about the traffic in Thailand i have come to the conclusion that it's bad, and it really is very bad, because of one (or two) thing(s): rote learning and authority "issues". Rote learning is like brain cancer for any children that are forced into it and basicly all schools in Thailand have that kind of teaching. Now what does rote learning have anything to do with traffic? Well, people who drive car/motorcycles in Thailand haven't actually learned to properly to drive a motor vehicle and more than likely they have been "taught" to drive by their parents, or even worse by no one, who are just as clueless about driving as anyone else in Thailand...

So in short: "papa said to drive like this.... who am i to question his authority"?

[1BADDAT]

Just coming from Bkk to pattaya on motorway 7 today. Guy in the right lane changing a tire. One guy waving traffic around. The thai in my car did not see any issue with this at all.

To the posters point above. Do they now understand that you pull over to the left shoulder to change a tire? His tire was completely shredded so his rim was already ruined anyway. Another 100 meters of driving on it would have got him safety on the left shoulder.

[Langsuan Man]

Construction on Highway 317 between Chantaburi and Khao Soi Dao Waterfall. Instead of traffic cones to keep drivers off of the new macadam, they have old sticks of wood and tree limbs laying on the road. Wonder what it is like at night without any street lights to illuminate these road hazards

So it is not only the stupid drivers but also those traffic engineers that are supposed to know better