Travel on public holidays.

[brownknees]

A week ago today my wife and I travelled back to Isaan forgetting it was the Queens birthday and thus a public holiday.It would appear that on these public holidays road traffic rules do not apply?Leaving Pattaya and joining the 331 the traffic was a little more than usual (0545)and progress was steady although I noticed that the hard shoulder was now an extra lane at times !Then we joined the (301?)road to Kabinburi and the traffic increased a great deal and now we had three lanes full!After a while traffic stopped and we sat for a very long time ,road works held us up and the police seemed to be running a quota system of half an hour of northbound allowed followed by the same for southbound?After this we rejoined the formula one race up the mountains  and on to Korat and on to Kon Kaen where thankfully the traffic thinned out on the final run to Udon Thani.Arrived home at 2100hrs!!!Strangely I only saw two accidents but assume there were more.

So my advise is DO NOT TRAVEL ON PUBLIC HOLIDAYS ,this was my most scary day of driving since coming to Thailand(1998).

[khwaibah]

Try Songkran or New Years holiday they are  both 7 day demolition derbies. They make the Queens 3 day holiday look like a nursery school party. Rule of Thumb is Never, never, never never drive anywhere in Thailand on ANY  holiday.

[KhunBENQ]

Thanks for the reminder.

Happened to me once and never again.

 

Big wall calender, color marked!

Would well be put in the Generals forum.

[billd766]

It really depends a lot on which way you are travelling.

 

If you are going into BKK on a long holiday then most of the traffic is heading outbound so it is easier and the same in reverse.

 

Sadly if you are going with the flow each time then give up and travel the day before or after.