Khon Kaen Zoo trolleybus crash blamed on rusted accelerator

[webfact]

Trolleybus crash blamed on rusted accelerator
Jitima Janphrom
The Nation
Khon Kaen



KHON KAEN: -- A rusting accelerator has been identified as the likely cause of the fatal crash of two trolleybuses at the Khon Kaen Zoo.

Assoc Prof Ratchaphon Suntivarakorn, who leads the Khon Kaen University's mechanical engineering department, examined the vehicles involved in the accident and found that the accelerator pedal had been rusted.

"There are grounds to believe that the rust caused the accelerator to fail," he said.

The crash took place on Sunday, killing five people and injuring 55 others.

Police called on Ratchaphon to help with the investigation, because he is an expert in mechanical engineering. He examined the vehicle in police presence.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Trolleybus-crash-blamed-on-rusted-accelerator-30263998.html


-- The Nation 2015-07-08

[Assurancetourix]

When it's not " brakes failed it's now accelerator fail because of rust ;

Maybe they ( thai people ) MUST begin to learn some words like :

maintain, clean , check periodically ... and especially to practice .

[clockman]

No, Thianess, buy more Amulets!

[worgeordie]

They should have review ,before getting Submarines and Bullet trains,

if they cannot maintain trolley buses.

regards worgeordie

[halloween]

Hey Prof, the pedal is at the other end.

[DGS1244]

Cause rust, NO. more like cause failure of management to enforce routine maintenance program.

[jerojero]

What! It's not the brakes! This is impossible.

[sammygood]

the cause of the bungee jump death, not the owners, but the rubber band broke

and the zip line, not the operators, it was the damn safety harness that broke

never a thais fault, always a reason not to blame self

[ratcatcher]

It seems a shame that news reporters cannot use the correct terminology or simply, words, to describe these vehicles.

Yesterday they were trams which run on steel rails or other fixed guide systems.

Today they are trolley buses which are electric vehicles drawing power from overhead wires.

I am not a mechanical engineer, but my guess is they are just diesel powered open sided buses.

[slapout]

heat was also a contritibuting factor as friction increase was associated with the rapid taping of drivers foot keeping time to music.. that rusty is a dangerous guy, better have a refresher to his driving school dipoloma issued back in ''82''

application on a regular time frame of oil grease, wd 40, would go a long way in this country in prevenytng death/injury

[ratcatcher]

heat was also a contritibuting factor as friction increase was associated with the rapid taping of drivers foot keeping time to music.. that rusty is a dangerous guy, better have a refresher to his driving school dipoloma issued back in ''82''

application on a regular time frame of oil grease, wd 40, would go a long way in this country in prevenytng death/injury

In the world outside Thailand that is called MAINTENANCE. It is a western concept some say.

[lostinisaan]

Hey Prof, the pedal is at the other end.

Yep, just wondering if the Professor is that good, or if it got lost in translation? No idea if it's a photo of the crashed vehicle, but the upper cable seems to be relatively new.

The Professor's pointing at the throttle and you can Google how many accidents world wide happen(ed), because of a hanging throttle, a broken cable that keeps the throttle open, or a broken spring that usually takes the throttle back.

I find it hard to believe that so many here with their conspiracy theories are still blaming "stupid Thais"?

Such things already happened too many times with Fords, Hondas, Toyotas,, Pontiacs and a few more.....

Please see: http://www.abcactionnews.com/news/local-news/i-team-investigates/another-out-of-control-car-ford-investigation-expands

[Crossy]

That throttle cable looks new (although the inner looks rather dark).

Did the good Prof. comment upon that? Did it get lubed on installation? Did the mechanism get lubed when the "tech" replaced the cable?

So many questions.

[gandalf12]

How does a rusty accelerator pedal cause the accident? Brake yes and even clutch but not the accelerator

Edited July 8, 2015 by gandalf12

[oneday]

It's called scheduled preventative maintenance.

[Emster23]

I've got a can of WD40 bought here, so it is available..... everything rusts and corrodes, so not like it is a surprise or anything.....

[Garry]

When it's not " brakes failed it's now accelerator fail because of rust ;

Maybe they ( thai people ) MUST begin to learn some words like :

maintain, clean , check periodically ... and especially to practice .

No such animal as preventative & scheduled maintenance in these types of operations in Thailand, where these processes encroach on the bottom line.

[Pattaya28]

So anyone to blame here ?

Is maintenance ever done on public service vehicles ?

Does anyone actually care ?

Think the only thing actually cared about is maximum profit versus lowest outgoings.

And if necessary, health & safety issues swept under the carpet.

[halloween]

Normal wise the brakes win from engine power. Even if the accelerator has full throttle, the brakes can stop the vehicle

It's "no contest" when you knock it out of gear.

[Bung]

Even with a stuck accelerator its a simple matter of knocking it into neutral whether auto or manual box (pretty sure it is an auto) and applying the brakes. Unfortunately applying for the job of driving 50 people around obviously doesn't require any proof of skill.

These things are just based on a (usually wrecked) pickup.they make the bodies from scratch and use the pickup mechanicals. All knocked together by a bunch of untrained people in a shed at the lowest price possible. All the mechanicals inside the cab are open to the elements. No one ever gives the idea of any maintenance a passing thought. They will only get worked on once they break down or in this case, get wrecked. I can garantee they will be beaten back into service in a week or two.

[jonclark]

And the sad thing is that with a bit of inspection and maintenance the five people who went to enjoy a day out of the zoo would still be with their friends and family today. Instead of being placed inside a funeral pyre.

Once again 5 lives are cheaper than the cost of a 6 monthly inspection.

[sawadee1947]

business as usual.....of course it was not the fault of the driver..........and rust came over night...?

[jackanapes]

as I stated before this is a tourist venue and in my opinion all vehicles should be regularly maintained but again this is Thailand what should be done never gets done its too much hassle .

[hkt83100]

My armchair advice would be to shut off the engine. It is just a turn of the key. And the steering wheel will not lock, unless you take the key out. But local drivers tend to stare with mouth wide open instead of doing something reasonable.

[Jimlove]

No matter who gets killed, how many or where it happen - Its not possible that its fault of a thai .... Too bad the idiot driver was not burmese huh ...

[Chao Lao Beach]

the cause of the bungee jump death, not the owners, but the rubber band broke

and the zip line, not the operators, it was the damn safety harness that broke

never a thais fault, always a reason not to blame self

So true

[greenchair]

I am wondering if they will drop the charge of the driver.

Then arrest the owner of the zoo for not maintaining the vehicles. Hmm mmmm

[Thian]

Then why the driver didn't turn off the ignition by key?

But it's the same at the temples, there are roundtrips in special tuktuks and the drivers are boys from 12-14. The drove me fast under some low hanging branches and if i didn't see them coming i wouldn't be here.

It ain't strange that in the West we have driverlicenses, i mean real driverslicenses that took like 40-100 hours of lessons to get one.

To me this engine looks fine, i don't see the rust. But was the vehicle inspected every year? If so then who did it? Was he licensed to do that?

I allready refuse to go on Thai boats but i think from now on i will also boycot all Thai public transport except skytrains and metro's.

[Sviss Geez]

They should have review ,before getting Submarines and Bullet trains,

if they cannot maintain trolley buses.

regards worgeordie

Absolutely right, the same people looking after Khon Kaen Zoo's carts will be maintaining the subs and trains.

[Sviss Geez]

Hey Prof, the pedal is at the other end.

Hey, Einstein, it's a translation from Thai.