Bangkok:- A talk of the town on online social networks that a farang family was abandoned by a taxi on expressway seemed to take a new twist following an investigation by the Land Transport Department.

On March 16, a Facebook user, Surachai Hiranpradithkul posted a picture of a farang man, his wife and their baby on his wall, saying the unidentified family had been abandoned on the elevated expressway near the Asoke tollgate.

Surachai claimed his friend, who is an expressway police, helped transport the family to the ground.

The post was widely shared by Facebook users, who strongly criticized the unknown taxi driver.

Several Thai online news websites played up the issue, with headlines like Suvarnabhumi airport taxi did it again.

But Phet Chuncharoen, deputy director of the Suvarnabhumi airport, said airport officials checked the footage of passengers taking taxis at all gates of the airport on March 16 and did not spot the family as shown in the photo.

On Saturday, Land Transport Deputy Director Suchart Klinsuwan said he had talked to Surachai’s friend who found the family and who took the picture and the friend said he was not sure that the family had been abandoned by a taxi.

Suchart said Surachai’s friend spotted the family walking to the Asoke gate at about 5:50 pm so he offered them a ride and pointed them out how to get out of the expressway. The friend admitted that he did not see any taxi at the spot.

Suchart also checked with an official the Asoke gateway and found out that the farang couple did not cry foul that they had been abandoned. They simply said calmly that they wanted to go to the Tourism Authority of Thailand head office on the Phetchaburi Road to get more tourist information.

Bite your tongues really hard now, all the TVF members condemning the taxi driver.

"Foot in mouth" disease very common on TVF.........except me............................

good reason to take a pict of the driver and his taxi card id

Abandoned by a taxi driver.

Just like that for absolutely no reason?

Hmmmm. .. time to put the thinking cap on, before commenting!

So if you were on a motorway (non pedestrians) in any country, would you let them out to walk the rest if the passenger requested it?

They simply said calmly that they wanted to go to the Tourism Authority of Thailand head office on the Phetchaburi Road to get more tourist information.

Let's hope they wanted information about "Tourism will increase 3000% this year in Thailand".

good reason to take a pict of the driver and his taxi card id

You really don't get it, do you?

Abandoned by a taxi driver.

Just like that for absolutely no reason?

Hmmmm. .. time to put the thinking cap on, before commenting!

Yes, indeed, you should have. You should have also read the implication of the OP.

Nooooo...we know by now: they took their 20+ kilo rucksack, the guitar and the toddler and walked up the tollway...as you do!

I know nothing of this incident just like everyone else. But my gut reaction was not negative to the thai taxi driver it was more a feeling of what trouble or offense have the farangs caused to make the taxi driver so mad that he wants you out of his taxi ASAP on the express way? Or were the farangs so silly that they insisted on being let out on such a dangerous spot? Who knows but the farangs may not be so innocent.

why not ask them?

Have they spoken to the family about this incident or are we getting only one side of the story here? My guess is the latter, as the family would have 'left' according to official sources no doubt.

I know nothing of this incident just like everyone else. But my gut reaction was not negative to the thai taxi driver it was more a feeling of what trouble or offense have the farangs caused to make the taxi driver so mad that he wants you out of his taxi ASAP on the express way? Or were the farangs so silly that they insisted on being let out on such a dangerous spot? Who knows but the farangs may not be so innocent.

What is farang? This is not an English word.

Why has the Thaivisa News Team started ANOTHER thread on this non- subject?

Click baiting?

good reason to take a pict of the driver and his taxi card id

What taxi? It seems that only two people are somewhat convinced that there was one... are you and the stupid reporter of the article. If you read the summary of the article, even the reporter begins to doubt what he claims.

This is truly awful reporting, and should not have appeared in print or anywhere else... most especially on TVF, for it serves no purpose other than as a troll post.

The reporter needs to sort out fact from fiction before publishing a story.

Edited March 24, 201511 yr by Gumballl

Yup... click bait.

Oop$... done it again!

Bite your tongues really hard now, all the TVF members condemning the taxi driver.

"Foot in mouth" disease very common on TVF.........except me............................

Right. You're just an arse.

Abandoned by a taxi driver.

Just like that for absolutely no reason?

Hmmmm. .. time to put the thinking cap on, before commenting!

Yes, indeed, you should have. You should have also read the implication of the OP.

Thank you for the reminder!

But we all know how some foreigners behave/treat locals - lucky, they were, " if " they were only abandoned, things could have been worse.

To give the devil its due... maybe an extremely patient taxi driver who lost his cool and resorted to the next best option when he could not tolerate the ambiance any more.

Lesson learnt.