What does the average British expat think of Tommy?

[smedly]

32 minutes ago, Gweiloman said:

If the Russian rode anything like the local Thais, then I wouldn't be surprised if they did cut out in front of the taxi. I have had lots of bikes cut in front of me without checking and it's only because I ride/drive defensively that I can avoid running into them from the back

sounds to me like you were driving too fast for the location and conditions, do you think farangs are all blameless and good drivers - I can tell you 100% they are not, if you have to brake hard or take evasive action if another motorist moves into your lane then you are driving far too fast

[smedly]

4 hours ago, Old Croc said:

They recently released road death statistics here for the ten months to 31/10/16 - 144 dead, 84% of whom were males. A whopping 80% of the dead were bike riders. And 80% of those were helmetless. A death about every two days.

It's impossible not to link these kind of statistics to the almost complete lack of a viable public transport system on Phuket. Far too many kids start riding bikes at an early age, often just to get to school. Many never ride on public transport.  Bikes become a plaything or ego booster for these immature fools. They can often be seen flat out, weaving through traffic, or lying on the road in a pool of blood.  A light rail system has been announced, who knows if it will eventuate. Also, a consortium plans a bus system servicing the city.

 

The real problems arn't being addressed. When they announce police crackdowns it usually just involves passive roadblocks and fine collecting. The place needs some old fashioned policing, involving mobile officers booking speeders and actively enforcing helmet and MDL rules.

The death road from the airport to the bypass turnoff particularly requires extra attention to slow the suicide jockeys and taxis.

 

if you understood about helmets and their effectiveness on impact you will find that they would likely have made little difference, expensive helmets are tested for impact up to 15-20mph the neck isn't and neither is the brain, in some specific cases they will save a life if wearing one they will not cause a death either so probably best to wear one anyway- the simple fact is if you hit anything solid at over 25mph you will likely die or suffer very serious injuries if lucky - speeds over 25mph you are going to dies no matter what you are wearing and remember I said "hitting something solid" it does not apply to 120+mph motogp riders sliding along on their arse - the last motogp rider to die on track hit a solid object - another bike  

[Greasewheel]

1 hour ago, smedly said:

sounds to me like you were driving too fast for the location and conditions, do you think farangs are all blameless and good drivers - I can tell you 100% they are not, if you have to brake hard or take evasive action if another motorist moves into your lane then you are driving far too fast

There are plenty of situations that I could think of where you wouldn't need to be driving too fast but still need to brake or steer hard evasively. Anybody making a lane change without seeing you could cause it no matter your speed.

[cornishcarlos]

sounds to me like you were driving too fast for the location and conditions, do you think farangs are all blameless and good drivers - I can tell you 100% they are not, if you have to brake hard or take evasive action if another motorist moves into your lane then you are driving far too fast

Sounds to me like you have not observed Thai scooter driving styles enough... They do just cut across main roads without looking, happens all the time.. Probably due to lack of proper training or any training.
The accident I mentioned in my earlier post, which I saw yesterday morning, was exactly that scenario. He died in hospital btw. No helmet !! The car that hit him was probably doing 100kph+ as its the main highway here, not too fast for the road or yesterdays conditions

[smedly]

8 hours ago, Greasewheel said:

There are plenty of situations that I could think of where you wouldn't need to be driving too fast but still need to brake or steer hard evasively. Anybody making a lane change without seeing you could cause it no matter your speed.

I hope you will furnish us all with your driving history for the last 30 years - my guess is you won't

[smedly]

7 hours ago, cornishcarlos said:

 

Sounds to me like you have not observed Thai scooter driving styles enough... They do just cut across main roads without looking, happens all the time.. Probably due to lack of proper training or any training.
The accident I mentioned in my earlier post, which I saw yesterday morning, was exactly that scenario. He died in hospital btw. No helmet !! The car that hit him was probably doing 100kph+ as its the main highway here, not too fast for the road or yesterdays conditions

 

well you are making up a whole pile right there, you ............ yes you have an obligation to drive within your limits ............................ yes there might be the very rare situation were you cannot avoid a collision but from what I have seen in Thailand ..... and in the west it is usually because some ahole is driving too fast

 

like I said in an earlier post - Phuket authorities need to do something radicle to stop the carnage on the roads there - 25mph speed limit enforced throughout the Island (yes that includes you) might go someway to improve the survival rate on the roads

 

The weird thing is - if everyone was forced to drive at under 25mph their journey time throughout the whole island might increase by a few minutes  but save countless lives, either way something needs to happen, there are just too many people losing their lives on the roads in Phuket

 

I would also ban the rental of motorbikes but equally enforce some very strict rules about the charging of transportation on the island - they cleaned up the beaches now get a handle on the tuk tuk rip off debacle...........a challenge that needs serious attention .............................10baht to go from one end of pattaya to another and 20baht to go to Jomtien ...............Phuket - add several zero's

 

Time for the government to focus on this stupidity...................tuk tuk mafia next target

[Gweiloman]

15 hours ago, smedly said:

sounds to me like you were driving too fast for the location and conditions, do you think farangs are all blameless and good drivers - I can tell you 100% they are not, if you have to brake hard or take evasive action if another motorist moves into your lane then you are driving far too fast

 

Sorry smedly. I normally agree with a lot of your posts but in this instance, your post makes me wonder how much you drive/ride in Thailand.

 

On national A roads for eg, the official speed limit is 80 kmh. Given the relatively low traffic on a lot of these stretches outside of Bangkok, cruising at this speed is not dangerous or reckless driving at all.

 

The problem arises when you are riding a bike as opposed to driving a car. You are less visible on a bike. I have lost count of the number of times that they cut out to the middle of the road to turn right without fully checking what's coming up behind them. It is only because on my experience and defensive riding style that I can practically anticipate this move of theirs and be prepared for it. I also never mentioned that I had to brake hard or to take evasive action.