Motorist kills, injures cyclists in another such tragedy

[gandalf12]

I used to do a lot of cycling and was active in time trialing but here no way would I consider it. The drivers in Thailand have no regard for anything or anyone. The law needs to come down rally hard on them or they will just ignore the law.

Leaving the scene of an accident should carry a minimum of 2 months jail time plus anything else that the court hands down to them

[gandalf12]

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Three points:

1. What happened to the Red Bull heir? Until universal accountability is the law, these atrocities will continue in Thailand.

2. I teach Emergency/First Responder, and we tell our students if you come across an accident in Thailand, run, don't walk, in the other direction. I stopped once to help at the scene of an accident (two cute girls in a minor motorbike accident, I couldn't say no). When police arrived, they did their damndest to try and implicate me. Thank goodness there were too many witnesses that sided with me. The BiB looked quite angry but had to let me go. Yes, Good Samaritan Law needed!

3. In the U.S., it is a greater crime to hit-and-run than driving under the influence. The police really should do their job, but we know how THAT'S going.

Still a developing country, but developing into WHAT defies logic.

I also teach efr but try to give morals to my students, not nonsense and urban.myths.

Sounds like the same mentality as they have in Saudi. There you are told if there is an accident and people are laying in the road do not stop unless a policeman waves you down. If yu do you will be held responsible for the accident and anything that happens to the people involved

[lovetotravel]

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Three points:

1. What happened to the Red Bull heir? Until universal accountability is the law, these atrocities will continue in Thailand.

2. I teach Emergency/First Responder, and we tell our students if you come across an accident in Thailand, run, don't walk, in the other direction. I stopped once to help at the scene of an accident (two cute girls in a minor motorbike accident, I couldn't say no). When police arrived, they did their damndest to try and implicate me. Thank goodness there were too many witnesses that sided with me. The BiB looked quite angry but had to let me go. Yes, Good Samaritan Law needed!

3. In the U.S., it is a greater crime to hit-and-run than driving under the influence. The police really should do their job, but we know how THAT'S going.

Still a developing country, but developing into WHAT defies logic.

I also teach efr but try to give morals to my students, not nonsense and urban.myths.

Sounds like the same mentality as they have in Saudi. There you are told if there is an accident and people are laying in the road do not stop unless a policeman waves you down. If yu do you will be held responsible for the accident and anything that happens to the people involved

Laws do tend to affect people's behavior. In some countries, leaving the scene of an accident is a big deal. In others, it's a way to potentially get out of a difficult situation. Or like here, turn yourself in several days later after you've had time to negotiate things. China set a precedent several years ago when they allowed an accident victim to sue somebody trying to help. Now? Nobody will stop to help as they are too scared.

[selftaopath]

Condolences to the deceased's' family.

This occurs daily and Thailand doesn't seem to care. So why is it "news."

[Confuscious]

I've lived in thailand for over 30 years and although I've seen changes in the infrastructure of Bangkok, how people have become more materialistic and a plethora of other changes, one constant remains.

The traffic laws.

You can still drive the wrong way up a one way road (I think these cyclsts were). You have to wear a seatbelt while driving and sitting in the front seat, but you can pile 50 people into a pick- up truck. Taxis still cover thier windowns with stickers and film, even though it was made illegal after too many rapes and deaths ... to name but a few.

I drive to work at the speed limit of 80km/h on the tollway and EVERY vehicle passes me!

Thailand should introduce the driving license points system and licences should be taken away from bad drivers in 1 year, 10 year and life time bans. Insurance companies could easily change their policies and charge exobitant rates for convicted drunk driver and wreckless drivers.....

hahahahahahahahahahahahaha

Driving license point system?

In a country where 75% of the drivers don't even have a driver license?

Insurance companies changing their policies?

In a country where 75% of the drivers don't have a proper insurance (mostly only the 500 baht compulsory insurance)?

Cynical made my day.

(No pun intended ....)

[mango66]

RTP will ask the car owner !!

This thailand, hope he have collected already the funds for the cops !!

[LawrenceN]

Just an observation, and most certainly not an excuse or absolute reason for these terrible accidents, but in either case did the bikes have lights?

I say this because I don't think I have ever seen a bike with lights on after dark in Thailand.

Sad to say, but many cyclists have not overcome the mindset that says, "the way from point A to point B is on this six-lane highway." Cyclists need to get out there and get lost a few times on country roads for their own safety.

tell that to the many cyclists killed on"country roads" in Thailand, oh they are dead now. http://www.theguardian.com/uk/2013/feb/18/british-cyclists-killed-thailand

That link says nothing about the kind of road they were on when they died. Got more info?

The two incidents this week were both on high volume, high speed roads.

I have, by the way, survived two bike crashes, one in Thailand, one in the US. In both cases, I broke my helmet and got cuts and bruises. Neither involved a motor vehicle. I stand by what I said in my initial post: small rural roads are safer than big fast ones, mostly because the difference in speed is much less. You can die getting out of bed, but I do that every day as well.

[maidee]

thailand is not a place to do cycling

the only place your are +- safe is in a big SUV

[Sheryl]

Posts speculating that a specific identified individual was the driver have been removed, given Thailand's defamation laws.

[BirdsandBooze]

Not helping injured people - 10 years jail minimum. Doesn't matter intoxicated or not. Leaving badly wounded people suffering on the scene only thinking about yourself is LOWER than low. Piece of filth.

RIP to the victim who died.

Before they require drivers to render aid to victims, they need to put in place good Samaritan laws that protect the drivers from being prosecuted if their "help" is seen to cause further injury, as help from the untrained is prone to do.

It would also be helpful to put in meaningful punishment for vigilante justice that often sees drivers who don't do a runner beaten and even killed by angry bystanders and folks from the other vehicle.

The long term residents I work with, all tell me the best thing to do in an accident with injuries is to get away, contact the company attorney, and let him deal with it. And these aren't Thai guys. These are Brits, Canucks and Yanks.

Yes, that's true. On the other hand in the one instance I required the assistance of 'good samaritans' ( having fainted and cut my head open because of a low blood pressure issue) they were readily forthcoming...all Thai and they assistance they rendered was wonderful. I suspect it is the guilty and guilt-ridden who hide behind the good samaritan issue as a way to flee in a cowardly manner.

Agreed. I had a serious motorcycle accident here sustaining severe injuries. There were two people at the scene and they rushed to help me, an old man sweeping the street and a female, roadside food vendor. A HiSo woman following in a Benz parked her car behind me to protect me. They called an ambulance and phoned my wife to tell her where I was and what had happened. There are good people here, as you and I found out.

[bruceybonus]

Not helping injured people - 10 years jail minimum. Doesn't matter intoxicated or not. Leaving badly wounded people suffering on the scene only thinking about yourself is LOWER than low. Piece of filth.

RIP to the victim who died.

Before they require drivers to render aid to victims, they need to put in place good Samaritan laws that protect the drivers from being prosecuted if their "help" is seen to cause further injury, as help from the untrained is prone to do.

It would also be helpful to put in meaningful punishment for vigilante justice that often sees drivers who don't do a runner beaten and even killed by angry bystanders and folks from the other vehicle.

The long term residents I work with, all tell me the best thing to do in an accident with injuries is to get away, contact the company attorney, and let him deal with it. And these aren't Thai guys. These are Brits, Canucks and Yanks.

Yes, that's true. On the other hand in the one instance I required the assistance of 'good samaritans' ( having fainted and cut my head open because of a low blood pressure issue) they were readily forthcoming...all Thai and they assistance they rendered was wonderful. I suspect it is the guilty and guilt-ridden who hide behind the good samaritan issue as a way to flee in a cowardly manner.

Agreed. I had a serious motorcycle accident here sustaining severe injuries. There were two people at the scene and they rushed to help me, an old man sweeping the street and a female, roadside food vendor. A HiSo woman following in a Benz parked her car behind me to protect me. They called an ambulance and phoned my wife to tell her where I was and what had happened. There are good people here, as you and I found out.

Of course there are good people here, we just hear about all the scum & people who are above the law

[metisdead]

A post containing a link to a private site has been removed.

[kkerry]

According to the BP, Saran Inthanon the 23 year old car driver, has surrendered to police and the police are now deciding if he will be granted bail.

[Asiantravel]

Just an observation, and most certainly not an excuse or absolute reason for these terrible accidents, but in either case did the bikes have lights?

I say this because I don't think I have ever seen a bike with lights on after dark in Thailand.

I wondered the same as I read the story. But I have been noticing more lights on bikes after dark around Chiang Mai, especially on the more expensive bikes. If you spend 60,000 baht on your bike, what's another 300 for a blinking light?

I am a cyclist (6000+ km last year), and live near the scene of the recent incident. I avoid those big divided highways, mainly because of the speed that everything is moving, and the size of the big trucks. I know lots of little roads, and I'm often amazed at the folks on bikes out there on the big highways. I was going out to dinner last night, and my friend who was driving had to move right to avoid a cyclist (no lights after dark) on the middle ring road who swerved around a car parked in the left lane. You're right; it happens all the time.

On the little country roads, especially with curves, I can keep up with much of the traffic. Drivers are not in such a hurry, and the narrowness of the roads makes drivers cautious to begin with. There are lots of little villages where people have to slow down, and the mix of traffic - market carts, grannies on bikes, tractors and cattle - slows traffic as well. I rarely feel in danger, and drivers seem to pass patiently when they know there's room. At 25 to 30 kph, I'm not slowing them down much. It took some doing, some wrong turns, when I first moved here four years ago to find the backroads to, say Sankhampaeng Hot Springs. But now that's one of my favorite rides, far more pleasant than the noise and danger of major highways. Sad to say, but many cyclists have not overcome the mindset that says, "the way from point A to point B is on this six-lane highway." Cyclists need to get out there and get lost a few times on country roads for their own safety.

" But I have been noticing more lights on bikes after dark around Chiang Mai"

But I bet still hugely outnumbered by the number of tourists (particularly Chinese) who ride around Muang at night weaving in and out to avoid vehicles parked and blocking the bicycle lanes and along places like Huay Kaew Road without any lights and no helmets

[kkerry]

For years I never saw another person ride a bike with lights on where I live. Now I see some riders on expensive bikes with bright lights and more and more slow riders with at least a 60 baht flashing taillight after dark.

[Jeremy50]

Just an observation, and most certainly not an excuse or absolute reason for these terrible accidents, but in either case did the bikes have lights?

I say this because I don't think I have ever seen a bike with lights on after dark in Thailand.

These are club cyclists who probably meet several times a week, all have lights. My tail light can be seen from 1000 meters away at least. My front light is 200 lumens, I have to be careful not to blind motorists. With the fast growing popularity of road cycling here expect further tragedies , with lots of people saying sorry and waiing all over the place, but of course absolutely nothing will be done about the problem. RIP.

[Jeremy50]

Thailand should create a legal presumption of intoxication for anyone who runs. It should be presumed he ran to hide intoxication. Driving is a privilege, not a right, and this agreed presumption should be a condition of driving whether licensed or not.

There should also be heavy penalties for leaving the scene which would compound the penalties.

It should now be presumed that this driver ran because he was intoxicated, and intoxication should bring a presumption of being at fault. Failing to stop and render aid should also be a crime for the driver.

Drivers seem to believe that running is the answer to avoiding trouble when to the contrary it should compound the troubles.

Why do you live in Thailand.... Leave it to the Thai people to set their own laws.... if you don't like living here... there's the door... and please shut it behind you..!

Oh Christ, here come the pussy whipped "go home" sycophants.

My neck of the woods is full of these idiots, being led around Tesco by some hard-faced old bat, shopping trolly crammed full of coke and mama.

[2alex4alex]

25 Responses to this thread already.

Yet everybody living in Thailand know that the person who was driving the car will leave the police station in a few days and continue his normal life and his insurance will pay for the damages.

Blows my mind.

Only in Thailand you will be jailed for 18 years if you say or write the truth about somebody but walk spot free if you kill a lot people.

"Love this country"?

For what reason?

You remind me muslims in Europe..Coming to another country and starting to teach locals what they should or shouldn't do.

[Thaddeus]

25 Responses to this thread already.

Yet everybody living in Thailand know that the person who was driving the car will leave the police station in a few days and continue his normal life and his insurance will pay for the damages.

Blows my mind.

Only in Thailand you will be jailed for 18 years if you say or write the truth about somebody but walk spot free if you kill a lot people.

"Love this country"?

For what reason?

You remind me muslims in Europe..Coming to another country and starting to teach locals what they should or shouldn't do.

If recommending cyclists put lights on the front and back of their bikes and use them when the Sun goes down reminds you of that, you need help.

[selftaopath]

They would make changes to the leaving the scene of an accident penalties if they could work out a clause that exonerates drunk hiso's.

Indeed.

I feel Thailand is a lost cause.

[bruceybonus]

25 Responses to this thread already.

Yet everybody living in Thailand know that the person who was driving the car will leave the police station in a few days and continue his normal life and his insurance will pay for the damages.

Blows my mind.

Only in Thailand you will be jailed for 18 years if you say or write the truth about somebody but walk spot free if you kill a lot people.

"Love this country"?

For what reason?

You remind me muslims in Europe..Coming to another country and starting to teach locals what they should or shouldn't do.

Possibly the worst comparison ever made. Are you really that dim?

[2alex4alex]

25 Responses to this thread already.

Yet everybody living in Thailand know that the person who was driving the car will leave the police station in a few days and continue his normal life and his insurance will pay for the damages.

Blows my mind.

Only in Thailand you will be jailed for 18 years if you say or write the truth about somebody but walk spot free if you kill a lot people.

"Love this country"?

For what reason?

You remind me muslims in Europe..Coming to another country and starting to teach locals what they should or shouldn't do.

If recommending cyclists put lights on the front and back of their bikes and use them when the Sun goes down reminds you of that, you need help.

Reread your own message..Where do you mention using lights on bikes? I don't see it. But if you is able to see it I'm afraid nobody can help you

[2alex4alex]

25 Responses to this thread already.

Yet everybody living in Thailand know that the person who was driving the car will leave the police station in a few days and continue his normal life and his insurance will pay for the damages.

Blows my mind.

Only in Thailand you will be jailed for 18 years if you say or write the truth about somebody but walk spot free if you kill a lot people.

"Love this country"?

For what reason?

You remind me muslims in Europe..Coming to another country and starting to teach locals what they should or shouldn't do.

Possibly the worst comparison ever made. Are you really that dim?

If you're not able to understand this comparison..eh..eh..Never mind. You just really is not able to understand it .

[Banzai99]

Thailand should create a legal presumption of intoxication for anyone who runs. It should be presumed he ran to hide intoxication. Driving is a privilege, not a right, and this agreed presumption should be a condition of driving whether licensed or not.

There should also be heavy penalties for leaving the scene which would compound the penalties.

It should now be presumed that this driver ran because he was intoxicated, and intoxication should bring a presumption of being at fault. Failing to stop and render aid should also be a crime for the driver.

Drivers seem to believe that running is the answer to avoiding trouble when to the contrary it should compound the troubles.

Why do you live in Thailand.... Leave it to the Thai people to set their own laws.... if you don't like living here... there's the door... and please shut it behind you..!

He doesn't live here.

[Thaddeus]

25 Responses to this thread already.

Yet everybody living in Thailand know that the person who was driving the car will leave the police station in a few days and continue his normal life and his insurance will pay for the damages.

Blows my mind.

Only in Thailand you will be jailed for 18 years if you say or write the truth about somebody but walk spot free if you kill a lot people.

"Love this country"?

For what reason?

You remind me muslims in Europe..Coming to another country and starting to teach locals what they should or shouldn't do.

If recommending cyclists put lights on the front and back of their bikes and use them when the Sun goes down reminds you of that, you need help.

Reread your own message..Where do you mention using lights on bikes? I don't see it. But if you is able to see it I'm afraid nobody can help you

Other posters were offering helpful suggestions, I just picked that one thing as an example.

Did you offer any helpful suggestions?

No, instead you tried to belittle the posters that were by making a ridiculous analogy that was not only wrong but totally inappropriate.

[2alex4alex]

To Thaddeus-I replied to your message...not to messages of other posters. And I still don't see any "helpful suggestions" in your post. If only "Love this country?For what reason?" is one?

[Thaddeus]

To Thaddeus-I replied to your message...not to messages of other posters. And I still don't see any "helpful suggestions" in your post. If only "Love this country?For what reason?" is one?

No you didn't, you replied to a post by a member called Confuscious in a rather racist and bigoted way.

I commented on that.

Then you replied to that post serving no other purpose than to compound the issue, even though that wasn't what you wanted.

I never claimed that I made any useful suggestions myself, but by my comment it should be obvious that I agreed with the ones that were.

Tip: you're in a hole, stop digging.

[2alex4alex]

To Thaddeus-I replied to your message...not to messages of other posters. And I still don't see any "helpful suggestions" in your post. If only "Love this country?For what reason?" is one?

No you didn't, you replied to a post by a member called Confuscious in a rather racist and bigoted way.

I commented on that.

Then you replied to that post serving no other purpose than to compound the issue, even though that wasn't what you wanted.

I never claimed that I made any useful suggestions myself, but by my comment it should be obvious that I agreed with the ones that were.

Tip: you're in a hole, stop digging.

From all your messages I can make conclusion: You don't love Thailand because of some cyclist not putting on lights on their bikes.O.k., I see your point of view. You're really very smart!

[Thaddeus]

You don't know me at all, and making assumptions is always rather silly.

[Johnny S]

Thailand should create a legal presumption of intoxication for anyone who runs. It should be presumed he ran to hide intoxication. Driving is a privilege, not a right, and this agreed presumption should be a condition of driving whether licensed or not.

There should also be heavy penalties for leaving the scene which would compound the penalties.

It should now be presumed that this driver ran because he was intoxicated, and intoxication should bring a presumption of being at fault. Failing to stop and render aid should also be a crime for the driver.

Drivers seem to believe that running is the answer to avoiding trouble when to the contrary it should compound the troubles.

Why do you live in Thailand.... Leave it to the Thai people to set their own laws.... if you don't like living here... there's the door... and please shut it behind you..!

Geeezzz - Another one of those "if you dont like it just leave" ... NeverSure dont live in Land of S... but I would think its allowed to give some suggestions and advice since most thais are clueless what to do about the mayhem on the roads, dont you think so .... ?