Meeting to ensure road safety as tourists now travel more on personal cars to Thailand

[Barnet]

"One Thai driver who was hit by a Chinese driver about 3 weeks ago said his car was heavily damaged and the garage has estimated the repair cost at 200,000 baht.
He said that negotiation with the Chinese driver was also hard, as he needed a translator to do the talking for him.
But most importantly, he said the Chinese vehicles had no insurance coverage.
Until today, he has not received any payments for the damages caused, as the Chinese driver has already flown home."

He hit a Thai driver, went to a Thai mechanic in Thailand and was quoted 200,000 for repairs.

The translation was difficult as ehe Chinese guy could clearly see he was dealing with a dishonest piece of kwai dung as many of us do each day. A scam was immininent therefore he walked away without further discussion thus not giving any insurance details before flying home as many...... WAIT....Flew home? In the uninsured Chinese vehicle he hit him with???

[cheeryble]

,

I have noticed that thais often get confused with left and right which ever language is used

You know my wife?

[LannaGuy]

how do they get legally insured? i also thought you had to have a THAI licence and that international one does not cover here? even if the licence is not an issue surely all these chinese drivers don't have the insurance cover?

[connda]

Meeting to ensure road safety as tourists now travel more on personal cars to Thailand

Imho, the BIB has every right in the world to make sure that crazy foreigners travel IN the cars and not ON the cars like we repetitively see crazy, drunk farangs do in Pattaya and Phuket.

The next thing you know, Brits will be traveling to Thailand on top of Minis!!!

My, my my...Just Shocking behavior!

Edited February 20, 2016 by connda

[angiolo]

"The move came as there is growing trend of tourists driving on their own cars, causing road safety concerns among local motorists because of different traffic lane systems, particularly tourists from China where driving is on the left while on the right in Thailand."

​Erm, is it not the left you drive on in Thailand?

You got it in one. Drive on left in Thailand,not as stated . So now there will be many head on crashes. LOL

[trogers]

how do they get legally insured? i also thought you had to have a THAI licence and that international one does not cover here? even if the licence is not an issue surely all these chinese drivers don't have the insurance cover?

Thai drivers and vehicle owners too do not need to show any min. Third party insurance when extending their road taxes. The only compulsory insurance is bought from the Government is to cover only bodily harm.

[thaihome]

The author of the piece is obviously not a native English writer and got a bit confused on terminology. In thailand you drive on the left while sitting on the right side of the vehicle . It is referred to has a right hand drive car. China is the opposite.

Having some experience in sitting in right hand driven car from Hong Kong in mainland China it can be a disconcerting experience. Combine that with Chinese drivers that make Thai drivers look good it is no surprise there are problems in the border area.

TH

[retell]

Have spent half my life driving between left and right hand drive countries in both left and right hand drive cars, never had a problem with it apart from the odd moment when trying to change gear with the window winder or getting into the passenger seat with the keys in my hand,

I have noticed that thais often get confused with left and right which ever language is used

i clean the window on a few corners at first , but get used very quickly

[thaihome]

Have spent half my life driving between left and right hand drive countries in both left and right hand drive cars, never had a problem with it apart from the odd moment when trying to change gear with the window winder or getting into the passenger seat with the keys in my hand,

I have noticed that thais often get confused with left and right which ever language is used

i clean the window on a few corners at first , but get used very quickly

Have you ever driven a car with steering wheel on the opposite from the design of the road? It doubles the problems in adjusting to driving on the side of the road you are not used to.

TH

[stickylies]

Left. Right. Same same but different. China man no good. No understand Thai customs. China man drive strange car too, not Hilux or Honda. No like. Him bad. Him stay home in chinaland.

Edited February 20, 2016 by stickylies

[Artisi]

The solution is to ban all Thai drivers from the road, the death toll would then drop to 1 or 2 per day. See easy workable fix...

[jaltsc]

"Their unfamiliarity with the right hand drive traffic system in Thailand has caused numerous accidents..."

Yeah....That's it. Unfamiliarity with the right hand drive traffic system. It's amazing that tourists from every other country with a left hand system adapt quite quickly to driving in Thailand.

If you see everyone driving directly at you and you are too stupid to realize that it is you and not everyone else who's driving on the wrong side of the road, you are too freakin' stupid to be operating anything more complex than your feet...and that is even questionable.

I am getting tired of certain drivers of cars, motorbikes and bicycles coming directly at me on a regular basis. The only solution...If you come from a country where the license plates are blue, you are required to take public transportation. As scary as that sounds, they make the van driver who is drunk, sleep deprived and hopped up on 10 bottles of Red Bull, look like the poster child for safety.

Just a moment, on the subject of being 'too freaking stupid' since when did Thailand drive on the right hand side of the road? Actually, as everyone should know, including you, they drive on the left hand side of the road and here in Thailand that is right, sorry, better say correct, or someone else might get confused. Hence those people coming from countries where they drive on the left hand side of the road have absolutely NO difficulty in adapting, because they're used to it.

It's the right side of the car schmuck. No one said the right side of the road. Look up the definition of "right side drive". It's called the research method. It is aimed to go beyond the knowledge people get when they are too drunk to think rationally.

[mikosan]

"Their unfamiliarity with the right hand drive traffic system in Thailand has caused numerous accidents..."

Yeah....That's it. Unfamiliarity with the right hand drive traffic system. It's amazing that tourists from every other country with a left hand system adapt quite quickly to driving in Thailand.

If you see everyone driving directly at you and you are too stupid to realize that it is you and not everyone else who's driving on the wrong side of the road, you are too freakin' stupid to be operating anything more complex than your feet...and that is even questionable.

I am getting tired of certain drivers of cars, motorbikes and bicycles coming directly at me on a regular basis. The only solution...If you come from a country where the license plates are blue, you are required to take public transportation. As scary as that sounds, they make the van driver who is drunk, sleep deprived and hopped up on 10 bottles of Red Bull, look like the poster child for safety.

Just a moment, on the subject of being 'too freaking stupid' since when did Thailand drive on the right hand side of the road? Actually, as everyone should know, including you, they drive on the left hand side of the road and here in Thailand that is right, sorry, better say correct, or someone else might get confused. Hence those people coming from countries where they drive on the left hand side of the road have absolutely NO difficulty in adapting, because they're used to it.

It's the right side of the car schmuck. No one said the right side of the road. Look up the definition of "right side drive". It's called the research method. It is aimed to go beyond the knowledge people get when they are too drunk to think rationally.

I'm wondering who the 'schmuck ' is here mate. I can see where you are coming from, but you seem unable to express yourself sufficiently succinctly to be correctly understood. You mention 'right side drive' in your response, which could well mean having the steering wheel on the right hand side of the car or equally it could mean driving on the right, or both I guess. However, in your initial comment you write about a 'right-hand drive traffic system' note the word 'traffic', which means driving on the right hand side of the road, in anyone's language. In the same sentence you then mention a 'left hand system', which to someone with a modicum of intelligence, who thought they were following the reasoning of someone with an IQ slightly above moron rating, would tend to imply driving on the left hand side of the road. If you want to write about right hand drive and left hand drive cars, then say so and we will all understand to what your feeble mind is referring. As for being too drunk to think rationally, I don't drink, maybe you should lay off it a bit and give what's left of your brain cells a chance?

[thaihome]

I'm wondering who the 'schmuck ' is here mate. I can see where you are coming from, but you seem unable to express yourself sufficiently succinctly to be correctly understood. You mention 'right side drive' in your response, which could well mean having the steering wheel on the right hand side of the car or equally it could mean driving on the right, or both I guess. However, in your initial comment you write about a 'right-hand drive traffic system' note the word 'traffic', which means driving on the right hand side of the road, in anyone's language. In the same sentence you then mention a 'left hand system', which to someone with a modicum of intelligence, who thought they were following the reasoning of someone with an IQ slightly above moron rating, would tend to imply driving on the left hand side of the road. If you want to write about right hand drive and left hand drive cars, then say so and we will all understand to what your feeble mind is referring. As for being too drunk to think rationally, I don't drink, maybe you should lay off it a bit and give what's left of your brain cells a chance?

Name calling aside, internationally recognized standards refer to right or left hand drive systems based which side the driver sits.

The author of the article in the OP got this confused as well so no need to worry.

TH

[mikosan]

I'm wondering who the 'schmuck ' is here mate. I can see where you are coming from, but you seem unable to express yourself sufficiently succinctly to be correctly understood. You mention 'right side drive' in your response, which could well mean having the steering wheel on the right hand side of the car or equally it could mean driving on the right, or both I guess. However, in your initial comment you write about a 'right-hand drive traffic system' note the word 'traffic', which means driving on the right hand side of the road, in anyone's language. In the same sentence you then mention a 'left hand system', which to someone with a modicum of intelligence, who thought they were following the reasoning of someone with an IQ slightly above moron rating, would tend to imply driving on the left hand side of the road. If you want to write about right hand drive and left hand drive cars, then say so and we will all understand to what your feeble mind is referring. As for being too drunk to think rationally, I don't drink, maybe you should lay off it a bit and give what's left of your brain cells a chance?

Name calling aside, internationally recognized standards refer to right or left hand drive systems based which side the driver sits.

The author of the article in the OP got this confused as well so no need to worry.

TH

A polite response, how nice. I guess at the end of the day it's semantics. IMO the use of the word 'traffic' adds to the confusion, see

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-_and_left-hand_traffic

but then again it's quite clear what the term 'right hand drive' means, see

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Right-_and_left-hand_traffic

I guess I misunderstood the author of the article in the OP and was unnecessarily riled at his impolite response. End of story, there are far more important things to worry about. We do seem to have gone a little off subject, which, if I recall, was about how appallingly bad some visiting drivers are. A point with which I'm sure most of us would agree, even if in Thailand, it could be considered a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

Cheers.

Edited February 22, 2016 by mikosan

[thaihome]

The subject was Chinese bringing their left hand drive cars into Thailand which combined with their appalling driving skills (made worse by having to drive on the wrong side of the road) and not having to purchase Thailand recognized third party insurance at the border is causing problems, some of which could be remedied (not their driving skills, unfortunately)

TH

Edited February 22, 2016 by thaihome

[harrry]

leave their personal cars at the checkpoint and travel on rental car services instead

This violates the ASEAN Community whose members have not proposed similar rules against Thai tourists.

Maybe Thailand should pull out of ASEAN and become the Hub of One.

china is not part of the ASEAN community.

[CLW]

And usually nowadays aren't agreements between two countries bilateral, I mean that both nationality cars can enter each country. Especially between such close friends as TH and China.

[Tomtomtom69]

I can't see the issue at all. Thais are already perfectly overly massively well adjusted to wrong way drivers as it stands and can make up for others genuine mistakes.

However, if they can get a handle on that problem, great, if they do however, I'm still going to blow my shit about them priorities...

Chinese registered cars should NOT be allowed free entry into Thailand. What this grammatically incorrect article fails to mention, but the Bangkok Post mentioned perfectly well is that firstly there is NO agreement between China and Thailand on the entry of vehicles into each other's territory and secondly, Thai vehicles wanting to enter China have all sorts of hoops to jump, whereas up until now, Chinese vehicles have been allowed entry too easily here.

It's good to hear that the Thai LTD will slow down the flow of Chinese vehicles into Thailand by imposing more requirements. After all, if the Chinese government can do that to Thai (and other foreign registered vehicles) Thailand has all the right in the world to do a tit for tat.

Thailand HAS it's priorities right. Even if we for a minute were to agree that you are right about all them wrong way drivers (mostly scooters and small motorcycles), preventing more bad drivers entering Thailand and in particular, when they cause accidents causing headaches for local drivers IS a good thing.

Perhaps that's one reason why China is so paranoid about foreign drivers in it's country?

Only an idiot would disagree.

[Tomtomtom69]

And usually nowadays aren't agreements between two countries bilateral, I mean that both nationality cars can enter each country. Especially between such close friends as TH and China.

Exactly. You've hit the nail there. Often it's China requesting reciprocity on many issues, so the fact that the Chinese have been taking advantage of Thailand's lax entry requirements for foreign vehicles whereas Thais wanting to head in the other direction are given a slap in the face, is puzzling to say the least. If I were a Thai government minister I would have brought up this issue with the Chinese long ago and if they didn't agree to my request to allow Thai vehicles into China freely (at least to a number of southern provinces as per the GSM CBTA agreement that the ADB was instrumental in negotiating) I would have told them OK: no more Chinese vehicles in Thailand except under the same circumstances as what you impose on us.

Of course, this was never really a big deal up until now as the numbers of Chinese vehicles driving to Thailand was never very large up until 2014 or 2015 and especially this CNY. I mean 4000 Chinese vehicles during CNY? That's insane! The road traffic congestion alone is a major concern. Of course I remember an article from a very pro-Chinese bilingual magazine, focusing on trade, business, economic and social relations between Thailand and China called "Mekong" from 2011 or 2012 I think it was. The magazine I haven't seen in Thailand, but the Thai consulate in Kunming and a number of other places like some of the universities there carry copies. The article mentioned how the then still under construction 4th Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge could, once completed, during Chinese holidays allow up to 10,000 (yes 10,000!! are they insane, how could customs/immigration ever have coped with such numbers?) Chinese vehicles A DAY to cross into Thailand! No mention whatsoever about Thai vehicles or Lao vehicles crossing, even though the bridge connects Thailand and Laos directly, not China (it's as if the bridge would benefit only China and Chinese drivers - as the article seemed to imply). While there has never been 10,000 vehicles a day crossing (fortunately not even close) 4,000 in around 2-3 weeks is already a very large number and I'm glad something is being done about it, though it's probably not enough as the proposed 500 Baht entry fee (in addition to requiring insurance, advance permission, submission of travel itineraries, driver's licences etc.) is still far less than what the Chinese require of Thais with their 3 month advance notice, vehicle condition check, temporary Chinese driver's licence, guide and most of all, major deposit. However, it's a start and will certainly cut down on the number of Chinese vehicles driving in Thailand by the time it's implemented. If it's not enough of a deterrent by then, further measures will probably be imposed.

[Tomtomtom69]

I'm wondering who the 'schmuck ' is here mate. I can see where you are coming from, but you seem unable to express yourself sufficiently succinctly to be correctly understood. You mention 'right side drive' in your response, which could well mean having the steering wheel on the right hand side of the car or equally it could mean driving on the right, or both I guess. However, in your initial comment you write about a 'right-hand drive traffic system' note the word 'traffic', which means driving on the right hand side of the road, in anyone's language. In the same sentence you then mention a 'left hand system', which to someone with a modicum of intelligence, who thought they were following the reasoning of someone with an IQ slightly above moron rating, would tend to imply driving on the left hand side of the road. If you want to write about right hand drive and left hand drive cars, then say so and we will all understand to what your feeble mind is referring. As for being too drunk to think rationally, I don't drink, maybe you should lay off it a bit and give what's left of your brain cells a chance?

Name calling aside, internationally recognized standards refer to right or left hand drive systems based which side the driver sits.

The author of the article in the OP got this confused as well so no need to worry.

TH

The internationally recognized standard is Left-hand drive (LHD) and Right-hand drive (RHD), referring to the position of the steering wheel and more importantly, when referring to the traffic laws of a particular country, Left-hand traffic and Right-hand traffic. By using these terms accurately, there is no confusion. I can see where the confusion of the author came from, as he/she may be dyslexic or simply have problems distinguishing between the two (quite a few people do) BUT for the rest of us it should be quite straightforward.

Note that one should generally be referring more to the SIDE of the road traffic moves on than the side of the steering wheel. This is because in many countries not only does one see foreign registered vehicles with the steering wheel on the "wrong" side based on the traffic rules in that particular country, but also, many locally registered vehicles have their steering wheels on the "wrong" side. Therefore, it is inappropriate and confusing to refer continuously to RHD or LHD when one should rather be referring to Left-hand or Right-hand TRAFFIC.

Some countries where this is common include:

Mongolia (Right-hand traffic; lots of RHD vehicles)

Russia (Right-hand traffic; lots of RHD vehicles, particularly in the far east of the country)

Myanmar (Right-hand traffic; 90% of all locally registered vehicles have RHD)

US Virgin Islands (Left-hand traffic; mostly LHD vehicles)

Samoa (western) (Left-hand traffic; lots of LHD vehicles since the country only switched to left-hand traffic in 2009)

Cambodia (Right-hand traffic; large numbers of RHD vehicles in the west of the country, smaller numbers in Phnom Penh)

Edited February 29, 2016 by Tomtomtom69

[Tomtomtom69]

This thread is gonna be good. When Thailand takes the number 1 spot this year for road fatalities, and less than 0.01% were caused by the foreigners, I'm sure we'll still see articles blaming the foreigners.

Unfortunately, you have your head stuck in the sand and please stop playing the victim mentality.

First of all, there are many more road accidents that occur in China than in Thailand. After all, that country has far more vehicles than Thailand especially given it's a much larger country with a significantly larger population and around 19 million new private vehicles sold per year, now the highest in the world and far higher than the USA. Which equates to about the same number of vehicles as Thailand's entire fleet. Thais by comparison buy around 1 million new vehicles a year, give or take. OK, so Thailand has more vehicles per capita (perhaps twice as many as China) though China is catching up fast. On the other hand, some Chinese cities (such as Beijing and Shanghai) have made it harder to own a car in the first place so over time the rate of vehicle ownership in China will drop, but not before many more Chinese, particularly in the second and third tier cities own their own vehicle.

Secondly, apart from coming up with phoney, imagined statistics, realise that Chinese drivers, many of whom are not very skilled themselves coming to drive in a foreign country like Thailand, where driving is on the other side of the road from what they are used to is a recipe for disaster. Chinese drivers usually don't speak English (and are even less likely to speak Thai) and what happens in the event of an accident, especially a serious one (but even a less serious one)?

For years Chinese drivers have been allowed easy entry while Thai (and other foreign drivers) have been given the run-around trying to drive to China. Not that there would be a large demand for driving to China, but it would be nice to have some reciprocity. However, I'm glad to hear that the Thais will regulate the influx of Chinese vehicles because apart from them having 1) no insurance even though it's compulsory 2) they deserve it given what Thai drivers have to go through to drive to China 3) such large numbers cause immense traffic congestion and are unsustainable 4) what happens in case of an accident 5) Thailand's tourism industry loses a lot of revenue especially campervans and motorhomes that park for free and buy/bring their own food when the tourists should be paying for their vehicles to park overnight or be staying at hotels (or at least AirBNB).

[Tomtomtom69]

"He also said he didn’t think this would really increase the travel expenses for the tourists, as most of the Chinese motorists who drove their cars into Thailand are from the middle class and could afford the insurance premium."

Translation = You no Thai. You have big money. Must to pay. You give me now!

Well obviously that is true. However, how about the Chinese fork over say 250,000 Baht as a deposit when entering the country? Just in case they have an accident while in Thailand. It's only fair Thais request this (and reject a carnet, which Thailand doesn't recognize anyway) because after all, this is exactly what the arrogant Chinese authorities have been imposing on Thais and other foreign motorists for years.

Sorry China, but you've gotten away too easily so far. If you want us to deposit 50,000 Yuan (about 250,000 Baht) we can impose it on your drivers too. If you're afraid of our drivers, we have the right to be "afraid" of your drivers too. Tit for tat. Eye for an eye. It's the only fair way.

Now I wouldn't be saying this if China and Thailand actually had a fair, reciprocal agreement in place like the Thais have with Laos for example.

[Tomtomtom69]

Probably a lot of accidents with the Chinese is that they drive in convoys together and don't want to be split up so take risks avoid that .

I think the next step with convoys should be:

1) compulsory police escort

2) compulsory government or travel agency guide, at least in one of the cars

3) walkie talkies to communicate between drivers

After all, these are the same requirements imposed on foreign drivers by Vietnam and China.

If they can impose such rigid requirements, so can Thailand. Fortunately, Vietnam manages to keep the Chinese cars out. Thailand is putting in place the first steps in the right direction, but more may be needed.

​Also, Laos also has special requirements for convoys of 6 or more motorcycles (but not cars) travelling together.

[Tomtomtom69]

It's quite sad to blame a few foreigners for the massive number of road accidents in Thailand.

They should better educate and enforce the Thai drivers as they are the majority and therefore also responsible for more accidents.

Apart from that I learned driving on the right side, driving like this for 20 years. Now here in Thailand I had only little problems to adjust. And recently back from Vietnam where's right traffic. Again no problem. I think if you learned driving properly you can easily adjust both sides.

I think you're missing the point.

​First of all, sorting out driving standards in Thailand is going to take a while. It's much easier though to change habits locally than clean up the mess when a foreigner has an accident. Also, it is the duty of countries to ensure foreign tourists stay safe, I mean, if the Thais didn't do something about the large numbers of Chinese cars travelling within the country surely there would be more accidents and then one day the Chinese ambassador starts complaining why nothing has been done. This is a step in the right direction.

Also, if Thailand is a dangerous place to drive wouldn't you think it be prudent to greatly discourage, if not prevent foreign drivers from driving here? Thailand has enough problems with it's own driving standards that adding poorly trained foreign drivers (particularly tourists, as opposed to foreign residents who are in the same category as locals) is not a good idea.

I agree with you about the adjusting to different sides part. And BTW congrats on your ability to drive in Vietnam. Apart from expats and crazy backpackers renting out motor scooters, few foreigners have ever had the courage to drive in Vietnam, particularly cars, which are difficult for foreigners to get their hands on so to speak since self-drive car rental is virutally unavailable, while bringing in a foreign car (except if it's Lao or Cambodian registered) is also virtually impossible.

[Tomtomtom69]

leave their personal cars at the checkpoint and travel on rental car services instead

This violates the ASEAN Community whose members have not proposed similar rules against Thai tourists.

Maybe Thailand should pull out of ASEAN and become the Hub of One.

Dude, ASEAN does NOT include China.

Also, while this article is not specific about it except towards the end, "foreign registered" either means NON-ASEAN or just Chinese. That would be fair if you ask me, considering Chinese requirements for foreign vehicles to drive there.

Secondly, there is no ASEAN wide agreement on the entry of foreign registered vehicles. Only country specific ones. I highly doubt Thailand would renege on it's existing agreements with neighboring countries, especially Laos, with which it has an agreement for all types of vehicles.

Here are the agreements Thailand has signed:

Laos:

Official, reciprocal agreement for private vehicles, buses and trucks. No quotas on commercial vehicles.

Cambodia:

Official, reciprocal agreement for buses and trucks on a quota basis. Unofficial agreement for private vehicles at some international border crossings.

Malaysia:

Unofficial agreement for private vehicles based on the 1949 international convention on road traffic. Official agreement for trucks carrying perishable goods to Malaysia/Singapore based on a quota on tonnage/per year. For buses, Malaysian buses can only travel as far as Hat Yai/Songkhla. Similar restrictions for Thai buses/minivans inside Malaysia.

Singapore:

Unofficial agreement for private vehicles based on the 1949 international convention on road traffic. Official agreement for trucks carrying perishable goods based on a quota on tonnage/per year.

Myanmar:

Local agreement for private vehicles and trucks with restrictions on time and distance. Thailand imposes the same restrictions on Myanmar vehicles coming to Thailand. For example, in Mae Sot Burmese vehicles permitted to enter during the day ONLY from 5.30am and must be back in Myanmar by 8.30pm Thai time. Travel permitted only within greater Mae Sot. No further travel outside Mae Sot city. Similar restrictions in Mae Sai, except that Burmese vehicles can stay up to a week on the Thai side.

Vietnam:

Official agreement only for Thai trucks travelling across one Lao/Vietnamese crossing on a quota basis.

China:

No agreement whatsoever for any vehicle type. Therefore, Chinese vehicles should not be allowed to enter Thailand at all, rather than just banning commercial vehicles with Chinese plates. Good that the Thai LTD will make it more difficult for Chinese private cars to enter starting soon.

[Tomtomtom69]

If I go to Laos, with my RHD car, and drive there on the right I have no problems adjusting.

Same, in another life, I had no problems driving my LHD car pulling a big trailer in England on the left.

It all boils down to adjusting your driving to the situation you are in.

As for insurance, before entering Laos with my Thai car I have to take out a short term Lao insurance.

Thailand could do the same.

As for driving styles, guess there us nit much difference in quality between Thai drivers and Chinese drivers.

Which spells trouble.

Yep, well that's what Thailand is proposing (re: insurance) and in fact has required for a long time. Enforcement has until recently, been lax though. However, it's the same thing on the Lao side. Insurance is easy to buy there but nobody checks whether you have it until you have an accident of course.

The bigger issues I see with Chinese vehicles wanting to drive to Thailand is 1) lack of experience driving on the left, whereas a large percentage of Lao drivers, particularly those based in border cities like the capital Vientiane and Savannakhet have driven to Thailand before 2) their large numbers, especially during holiday periods 3) lack of respect for road rules 4) lack of familiarity with English or Thai leading to communication problems 5) their ease of entry - they should be required to deposit a large sum of money at the border, which they can only receive back if they return within their time allocation and no accidents.

As for your last comment on the quality of Thai vs. Chinese drivers. I have to say that Thai drivers are for the most part, more predictable and yes better than Chinese drivers though having lived in China the majority of drivers were pretty OK. Having said that, Chinese drivers are more aggressive, will beep their horns excessively (that can get you killed in Thailand) and not allow you to merge, whereas most Thai drivers will, if you merge the Thai way. Chinese drivers will do things like drive in a convoy of 3-4 vehicles each one cutting off truck drivers etc. so they can pull off to the left (or right in China), even if they indicate and think there's no problem with that (there is). And rather than pull off into a petrol station they just go to the side of the road. Or wait on the orange median strip on the motorway between motorway exits and the lanes continuing straight to check directions, pick their nose or whatever other strange habits they have.

[mikosan]

I'm wondering who the 'schmuck ' is here mate. I can see where you are coming from, but you seem unable to express yourself sufficiently succinctly to be correctly understood. You mention 'right side drive' in your response, which could well mean having the steering wheel on the right hand side of the car or equally it could mean driving on the right, or both I guess. However, in your initial comment you write about a 'right-hand drive traffic system' note the word 'traffic', which means driving on the right hand side of the road, in anyone's language. In the same sentence you then mention a 'left hand system', which to someone with a modicum of intelligence, who thought they were following the reasoning of someone with an IQ slightly above moron rating, would tend to imply driving on the left hand side of the road. If you want to write about right hand drive and left hand drive cars, then say so and we will all understand to what your feeble mind is referring. As for being too drunk to think rationally, I don't drink, maybe you should lay off it a bit and give what's left of your brain cells a chance?

Name calling aside, internationally recognized standards refer to right or left hand drive systems based which side the driver sits.

The author of the article in the OP got this confused as well so no need to worry.

TH

The internationally recognized standard is Left-hand drive (LHD) and Right-hand drive (RHD), referring to the position of the steering wheel and more importantly, when referring to the traffic laws of a particular country, Left-hand traffic and Right-hand traffic. By using these terms accurately, there is no confusion. I can see where the confusion of the author came from, as he/she may be dyslexic or simply have problems distinguishing between the two (quite a few people do) BUT for the rest of us it should be quite straightforward.

Note that one should generally be referring more to the SIDE of the road traffic moves on than the side of the steering wheel. This is because in many countries not only does one see foreign registered vehicles with the steering wheel on the "wrong" side based on the traffic rules in that particular country, but also, many locally registered vehicles have their steering wheels on the "wrong" side. Therefore, it is inappropriate and confusing to refer continuously to RHD or LHD when one should rather be referring to Left-hand or Right-hand TRAFFIC.

Some countries where this is common include:

Mongolia (Right-hand traffic; lots of RHD vehicles)

Russia (Right-hand traffic; lots of RHD vehicles, particularly in the far east of the country)

Myanmar (Right-hand traffic; 90% of all locally registered vehicles have RHD)

US Virgin Islands (Left-hand traffic; mostly LHD vehicles)

Samoa (western) (Left-hand traffic; lots of LHD vehicles since the country only switched to left-hand traffic in 2009)

Cambodia (Right-hand traffic; large numbers of RHD vehicles in the west of the country, smaller numbers in Phnom Penh)

I'm not sure to whom you are referring as being dyslexic, I hope not me, because I certainly am not. I concur with your comments, when we talk about left and right we should be referring to the side of the road that we actually drive on. Or have I misunderstood?

[Tomtomtom69]

"Their unfamiliarity with the right hand drive traffic system in Thailand has caused numerous accidents..."

Yeah....That's it. Unfamiliarity with the right hand drive traffic system. It's amazing that tourists from every other country with a left hand system adapt quite quickly to driving in Thailand.

If you see everyone driving directly at you and you are too stupid to realize that it is you and not everyone else who's driving on the wrong side of the road, you are too freakin' stupid to be operating anything more complex than your feet...and that is even questionable.

I am getting tired of certain drivers of cars, motorbikes and bicycles coming directly at me on a regular basis. The only solution...If you come from a country where the license plates are blue, you are required to take public transportation. As scary as that sounds, they make the van driver who is drunk, sleep deprived and hopped up on 10 bottles of Red Bull, look like the poster child for safety.

Yep, I fully agree with you.

​These new measures will go some way towards correcting the "blue plate menace". However, it may not be enough though it will certainly cut down on the numbers coming as soon as the new rules are entered into law and put into practice.

[Tomtomtom69]

The drivers in Chinese cars are necessarily not only driving on a side of the road that is not familiar, but the driver's side is on the opposite as well. This makes it especially dangerous as one's vision is different. This is not to mention the very different driving behavior found in Thailand.

The best suggestion is made by @daveAustin as there is no need to allow differently-handed cars into the country (Viet Nam does not, for one). The idea that a bare minimum of insurance should be required is also a no-brainer. As far as the government being able to implement any improvements, of course it can, as there is nothing stopping the military government from doing anything it wants with laws and regulations.

Will it do something? Wouldn't bet on it.

Well these new rules are a start - I think they would have implemented them no matter whether it's a military government or not. Read also the Bangkok Post article from Feb 29 on this story.

I think the rules should only apply to Chinese (or third country non-ASEAN cars) which likely they will since Thailand has already signed official agreements with some countries like Laos and Cambodia (only for commercial vehicles in the latter case) while at the same time lacking an agreement with China. Also, clearly it's Chinese vehicles that are the problem not say Lao or Cambodian ones, despite most vehicles registered in these two countries also having LHD.