Chiangmai Traffic Police Poster

[Assurancetourix]

3 hours ago, jonwilly said:

In my practical experience, 15 years, of driving most days in CM.

The majority of traffic accidents, as shown by the white drawings on the road occur on the approaches to Traffic Lights. 

I will suggest that this is caused by the extremely short time that the  'Amber' light is on, 3 secs max in my opinion.

Drivers do not have time to slow down for the Red light and so many, myself included, have crossed on a red light.

 

A suggestion... drive slowly ...drive for u not like other bababobo drivers...

 

50 years I'm a driver on roads, everywhere in Europe with a big truck or a tourism coach - yes, I was a trucker in another life - or my car ...in these 50 y,  11 years in Thailand;

never passed a red light ..

I was driving many times in Chiang Mai with my Isuzu pickup; not easy, easy;

I prefer to cycle and I never pass a red light on a bicycle; I stop ; maybe it's why I'm still alive ...

1,604 km on my MTBike this month, january 2017 .

15,735 km last year on my MTBike ..

Edited January 31, 2017 by Assurancetourix

[jollyhangmon]

4 hours ago, jonwilly said:

In my practical experience, 15 years, of driving most days in CM.

The majority of traffic accidents, as shown by the white drawings on the road occur on the approaches to Traffic Lights. 

I will suggest that this is caused by the extremely short time that the  'Amber' light is on, 3 secs max in my opinion.

Drivers do not have time to slow down for the Red light and so many, myself included, have crossed on a red light.

On the occasion I was caught I had to pay at Police Station.

2 Sgts on the desk. Senior Sgt says Red light, B400. I said but EVERYONE goes through Red light.

Both burst out laughing. The junior Sgt was having a 'Fit' in stitches as we say.

Senior still laughing starts tapping desk saying Sea Loy, Sea Loy (Spelling).

I paid they issued a receipt and they were still giggling as I left.

 

john

That's why in places with slightly more logic involved you'd have the green light starting to blink for at least 5 seconds before even switching to yellow which, yes, also would be on much longer before going to red.

 

Not really sure if it would help much given local driving-habits but it would at least significantly minimize the danger & possibility of involuntarily  running the red you pointed out correctly ... 

[thetruth revealer]

....in my country running by yellow light is considered same as running RED light, after 0.5 seconds the radar would flash you instantly( thats the official version).

...maybe thats what would make most sense here too, fine the rule breakers with evidences as a picture??? revoke licenses after certain offenses etc. etc.

...though it might be to hard for the authorities, a lot of ( unpleasant )work ...

[sammieuk1]

Suicidal over taking on bends and slow moving traffic with no gaps is my gripe.

[Alex Sharp]

Good to see that doing illegal U turns still not an offence so not listed on the gripe and fine list.

[jonwilly]

I was caught as I was last car in half a dozen that crossed. The driver behind me did an emergency stop and was lucky that car behind him had time to slow down.

In UK the 'Yellow' Amber is a command to stop, unless it is dangerous to do so. The Red is stop. Green means you may proceed, if it is SAFE to do so.

The government does not train people to obey the traffic lights. A Thai friend of mine says Red is OK to keep moving and only becomes stop after 5 secs, when it becomes Blood Red.

 

john

[Trujillo]

Sorry, I couldn't resist; this is in Koh Samui, but apropos the English....

 

...but the more you think of it, the more it almost makes some surreal sense.

[NancyL]

1 hour ago, Trujillo said:

Sorry, I couldn't resist; this is in Koh Samui, but apropos the English....

 

...but the more you think of it, the more it almost makes some surreal sense.

This is one example where the Thai language can be more elegant than English and can't be translated word for word.  There is a similar Thai slogan for drunk driving that would be inelegantly translated into proper English as "If you're driving, don't drink and if you're drunk, don't drive."  It loses something in the translation.  Have a native speaker read it to you and you'll see that it's a catchy slogan.  

 

The slogan on this poster could be translated as "If you're driving, don't use the telephone and if you're on the phone, don't do it while driving"  or something to that effect.  

[Assurancetourix]

NancyL , Do u remember the Bayioke tower 12 years ago ?

[impulse]

9 hours ago, NancyL said:

"Gripe" is a poor translation of the Thai word จับ which most would translate as "catch".  That's the No. 1 listing using Google translate.  "gripe" is on the list, but W-A-Y down, after other more sensible translations like "seize"  and "grab".   A more sensible translation would have been "caught and you'll be fined" 

 

"Gripe and fine" is scarier if you've ever been lectured by some of the California Highway Patrol cops.  By the time they get finished brow beating you for screwing up, you'd gladly pay double the fine just to get the lecture over with.  

 

And don't even think about suggesting they move things along...  It has pretty much the opposite effect.

 

That said, it's actually pretty effective at making you not want to go through that again, and they are polite.  Polite enough to drive you crazy.

[sharktooth]

How can they expect locals to read signs while driving and texting at the same time???

[sharktooth]

6 hours ago, thetruth revealer said:

. revoke licenses after certain offenses etc. etc.

 

 

To revoke a license, surely the offender would have to be in possession of one in the first place?

[AlexRich]

As I did not see the prefix "don't" in front of any of those warnings am I to assume that the good people of Chiang Mai are actively encouraging foreigners to do all those things?

[impulse]

3 minutes ago, sharktooth said:

To revoke a license, surely the offender would have to be in possession of one in the first place?

 

They could revoke vehicles if a license isn't offered up, couldn't they?

 

That may be an incentive to get a license.

[dingdongrb]

Just now, impulse said:

 

They could revoke vehicles if a license isn't offered up, couldn't they?

 

That may be an incentive to get a license.

I know they do that for the scooters.

[Pattaya28]

More bla bla bla bla bla 

[jchfriis]

11 hours ago, Saladin said:

I can never understand why the police can't get everybody wearing a helmet. Offences such as running a red light can be defended and require evidence but a rider is either wearing a helmet or not. It would be a simple matter to station police checkpoints along the major roads and whacking EVERY transgressor,with an on the spot fine or taking their keys. If this was an intensive blitz EVERYBODY would be wearing a helmet within a week or two. Imagine how much revenue they would raise.

That is too logical, besides it would kill the recurring revenue stream.

[NancyL]

3 hours ago, AlexRich said:

As I did not see the prefix "don't" in front of any of those warnings am I to assume that the good people of Chiang Mai are actively encouraging foreigners to do all those things?

Again, a big mistake in just reading the poor English translation. Basically, what the Thai language version says is "if you do any of this stuff and get caught, you'll pay a fine".

[AlexRich]

53 minutes ago, NancyL said:

Again, a big mistake in just reading the poor English translation. Basically, what the Thai language version says is "if you do any of this stuff and get caught, you'll pay a fine".

 

I was joking Nancy, I got it. It is very badly put together.

[NancyL]

6 minutes ago, AlexRich said:

 

I was joking Nancy, I got it. It is very badly put together.

Does make you wonder if the Chinese language version is just as bad and if, in a parallel universe, they're discussing this on a Chinese language forum.

[AlexRich]

1 minute ago, NancyL said:

Does make you wonder if the Chinese language version is just as bad and if, in a parallel universe, they're discussing this on a Chinese language forum.

I wouldn't be surprised in the least. To be fair, they might not have too many Thai employees that write well in English  ... I didn't meet that many CM Thais who were great English speakers either. 

[KKr]

As proclaimed on the poster, give them a gripe and they are fine.

Today on the irrigation canal road at the market near CMU, where I usually park the car when going vegs-shopping, double parked cars were being wheel clamped. (first time I saw that in the North.)
My local car's parking was a bit up the road but gripier then the big city cars that were clamped, so did not wait to see whether a tow-truck came.

[LawrenceN]

On 1/31/2017 at 0:09 AM, worgeordie said:

what does Gripe and Fine mean.

The Thai word they use might be translated as grip, but that would still be a horrible translation. Here it means arrest.

 

Forty years of reading Thai for me, and I have never understood why Thais don't run it by one of us native English speakers before they put this junk out in public.

[dingdongrb]

A couple things that really annoy me about driving in Thailand that I don't recall seeing mentioned:

 

- EXTREME tailgating.

 

- Straddling the center line and cutting across the center line when making a turn.

 

Of course there is the hilarious use of turn signals. Motorbikes always leaving them on. And then following a vehicle as they make numerous turn onto side streets without using their signal once, but yet when they take a 90 degree curve in the road where there is no side streets to turn off on they will use their signal......  too funny!

[Trujillo]

I didn't know NancyL could speak or read Thai, or was there help involved. 

[NancyL]

4 hours ago, Trujillo said:

I didn't know NancyL could speak or read Thai, or was there help involved. 

I can read and understand Thai, esp. someone speaking Bangkok Thai.  I can write (or rather turn out Thai with a keyboard, as in sending emails).  My speaking is bad.  Never had much of a chance to practice conversation.  I use it primarily when I'm assisting older foreigners at the hospitals -- listening to what the staff is saying, reading reports, signs, etc.  I studied with a private tutor for many years and the emphasis was on what I called "Lanna Care Net Thai" -- I know the Thai words for body parts and diseases, for example.

[true blue]

4 hours ago, NancyL said:

I can read and understand Thai, esp. someone speaking Bangkok Thai.  I can write (or rather turn out Thai with a keyboard, as in sending emails).  My speaking is bad.  Never had much of a chance to practice conversation.  I use it primarily when I'm assisting older foreigners at the hospitals -- listening to what the staff is saying, reading reports, signs, etc.  I studied with a private tutor for many years and the emphasis was on what I called "Lanna Care Net Thai" -- I know the Thai words for body parts and diseases, for example.

Shame your not living in Bangkok.l

[Trujillo]

I was wondering how you came up with "gripe" which you said you got off Google translate if you read Thai, but no matter. Good for you in your learning to speak the language of the place you thought you would retire in. 

 

I think anyone who comes to live here ala retirement and doesn't take the time to learn at least daily use Thai (spoken) is an idiot. 

[NancyL]

53 minutes ago, Trujillo said:

I was wondering how you came up with "gripe" which you said you got off Google translate if you read Thai, but no matter. Good for you in your learning to speak the language of the place you thought you would retire in. 

 

I think anyone who comes to live here ala retirement and doesn't take the time to learn at least daily use Thai (spoken) is an idiot. 

No, I had wondered where they got "gripe" because that isn't the first English word most people would think of as a translation.  That's why I consulted Google translate.  The first and most common translation, esp. in this context would be "to get caught", in the passive voice.

[Trujillo]

Quote

No, I had wondered where they got "gripe" because that isn't the first English word most people would think of as a translation.

 

It isn't any word anyone would think of. As I said before, the word "grip" is what they were trying to use but instead added an "e" that turned it into a meaning unrelated to the Thai.