Chaos at Mor Chit as many blame pick-up seating ban

[webfact]

Chaos at Mor Chit as many blame pick-up seating ban

 

Picture: Thai Rath

 

BANGKOK: -- Chaos reigned at Bangkok's main bus station yesterday as thousands were stranded with little hope of a timely departure.

 

Many were blaming the government's moves to enforce the rules about travelling in the back of pick-ups, reported Thai Rath.

 

Prime Minister Prayut said that in future people would be banned from riding in the back of pick-ups but though the move has been delayed until after the holidays it is still thought to have had an effect as people increasingly turn to public transport.

 

Operators yesterday were reporting more people than normal at Mor Chit 2 on what is traditionally the busiest day of the year for travel in Thailand.

 

Operators who are allowed to offer addition service vehicles said that they felt stymied by new stricter rules that had been put in place.

 

There were also widespread reports of overbooking meaning many were waiting in vain.

 

Thai Rath quoted many operators as saying their services were all full as thousands waited to depart the capital.

 

Source: Thai Rath

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2017-04-13

[Rhys]

....a learning....

[ChrisY1]

One thing most Thai governments, and more specifically, the junta, can do well, is to completely screw things up for the people.

Bringing in new rules for vans and pick-ups on the eve on the nations largest movement of Thais, shows a complete lack of common sense.

3-6 months prior and it may have been a lot different and allowing people to make alternate travel plans.

 

[robblok]

8 minutes ago, ChrisY1 said:

One thing most Thai governments, and more specifically, the junta, can do well, is to completely screw things up for the people.

Bringing in new rules for vans and pick-ups on the eve on the nations largest movement of Thais, shows a complete lack of common sense.

3-6 months prior and it may have been a lot different and allowing people to make alternate travel plans.

 

Chris,

 

Its been a couple of month already before this came into play so they did have time to act. They did of course nothing because they had hoped that it would not be enforced. 

[jollyhangmon]

That i call bull-crap, chaos just as usual ...

'Overbooking' ... same-same ... 

[ezzra]

42 minutes ago, ChrisY1 said:

One thing most Thai governments, and more specifically, the junta, can do well, is to completely screw things up for the people.

Bringing in new rules for vans and pick-ups on the eve on the nations largest movement of Thais, shows a complete lack of common sense.

3-6 months prior and it may have been a lot different and allowing people to make alternate travel plans.

 

 

That'll be too much lateral thinking on the part of the policy makers, are you

forgetting where we live and how gifted and endued are the  locals with

the simple reasoning and rational thinking?....

[PatOngo]

Meanwhile at Laem Chabang the NGV busses sit in limbo and the purchase contract has been cancelled......Great Minds!

[ChrisY1]

54 minutes ago, robblok said:

Chris,

 

Its been a couple of month already before this came into play so they did have time to act. They did of course nothing because they had hoped that it would not be enforced. 

My error...thought it was quite recent

[robblok]

2 minutes ago, ChrisY1 said:

My error...thought it was quite recent

Was around the same time they started talking about GPS and so on, cant recall the exact date but this is not that new. But I doubt the owners of vans had taken precautions and thought it would not be enforced. You know how it is here.. rules get made.. protest come and rules don't get enforced.. so why plan for them.

[hanuman2543]

2 hours ago, robblok said:

Chris,

 

Its been a couple of month already before this came into play so they did have time to act. They did of course nothing because they had hoped that it would not be enforced. 

Link? Not about the vans but riding in the back of a pick up.

Edited April 13, 2017 by hanuman2543

[robblok]

30 minutes ago, hanuman2543 said:

Link? Not about the vans but riding in the back of a pick up.

I am talking here about the vans not about the pickups and did the PM not say that this songkrang they would not enforce it for the pickups ?

[IamNoone88]

SNAFU - Situation Normal All ....... Up

[hansnl]

4 hours ago, robblok said:

Chris,

 

Its been a couple of month already before this came into play so they did have time to act. They did of course nothing because they had hoped that it would not be enforced. 

You are absolutely right.

The laws were there for years, never enforced, and now they will be, probably.

 

But about chaos at Morchit, same as last year.......

[AhFarangJa]

Proper Planning Prevents Piss Poor Performance.........

[OttoPollmann]

4 hours ago, PatOngo said:

Meanwhile at Laem Chabang the NGV busses sit in limbo and the purchase contract has been cancelled......Great Minds!

First of all, those buses are city buses and all those people are traveling interprovincial. Therefore it would be no help for those traveller.

Secondly, a fraud will be a fraud even you want it so badly or is it okay for you to make some exception if it's fits you.

[dddave]

4 hours ago, PatOngo said:

Meanwhile at Laem Chabang the NGV busses sit in limbo and the purchase contract has been cancelled......Great Minds!

Those are city buses, not inter-city so would have had no bearing on the Mo Chit chaos.

Contract cancelled for a very good reason...suspected massive tax avoidance fraud.  Nice to see something actually being done about it.

Besides; Mo Chit is chaotic every Songkran, this no worse than any other time.

[cardinalblue]

I used to have have a sign on my wall over my desk that stated a lack of planning on your part is not a crisis on my part - my employees got the message - it was quite effective....

Edited April 13, 2017 by cardinalblue

[mrmicbkktxl]

5 hours ago, ChrisY1 said:

One thing most Thai governments, and more specifically, the junta, can do well, is to completely screw things up for the people.

Bringing in new rules for vans and pick-ups on the eve on the nations largest movement of Thais, shows a complete lack of common sense.

3-6 months prior and it may have been a lot different and allowing people to make alternate travel plans.

 

Well it's difficult to plan about songkran,it's every year at same date,special for a government what likes Thailand back to stone age,besides that advanced thinking or planning is not really thai style

[elgordo38]

Looking at the picture this could turn out to be beneficial. No TV and if by a stroke of luck you get a "No Signal" on your mobile you could in the end make a lot of new friends. After all friendship is what life is all about. 

[DrTuner]

The real problem is everything is centralized to Bangkok. Decentralize so people don't have to move into that hellhole.

[patsfangr]

I am not a native of Thailand. I am, however, married to one. So I believe that gives me some right to speak out on this subject. First, let's recognize the reality that Thailand is a poor country. Many in the population can not afford even a motorbike for transportation. Such people often lack the education to get any work other than as a "day worker" in construction, or similar industry. Their only means of transportation, other than by foot, is to ride in the back of pickup trucks, often driven by other employees of the company they work for. This is most certainly a very risky mode of travel. But what are they to do? I don't have a simple answer to that question; nor do I think there is a simple answer to it. However, to summarily outlaw this important element of the economy seems to me to be both short sighted and insensitive. What am I missing?

 

[elgordo38]

The picture reminds me of me many moons ago when my adventure level ran higher. I have passed the baton to the youngsters some years ago. I to often in my younger years passed through the portals of foolishness. At the time it was not foolishness but part of the grand tour of life. 

[hanuman2543]

2 hours ago, robblok said:

I am talking here about the vans not about the pickups and did the PM not say that this songkrang they would not enforce it for the pickups ?

Did you read the title of the thread? It is about riding in the back of a pick up and not about vans. Sometimes reading and thinking first is helpful, especially if you try to lecture other people.

[robblok]

23 minutes ago, hanuman2543 said:

Did you read the title of the thread? It is about riding in the back of a pick up and not about vans. Sometimes reading and thinking first is helpful, especially if you try to lecture other people.

Actually its about both things, the extra flood of people is (according to the article) because of the ban on riding on pickup trucks and the operators of the vans feel that they restricted because of the seating rules.

 

But yes your right I should have read better, I was focusing on the vans, because I seem to have read that riding on the back of pickups was going to be allowed during songkran. 

[PatOngo]

1 hour ago, OttoPollmann said:

First of all, those buses are city buses and all those people are traveling interprovincial. Therefore it would be no help for those traveller.

Secondly, a fraud will be a fraud even you want it so badly or is it okay for you to make some exception if it's fits you.

Frankly....I don't care!

[ToddinChonburi]

No more stuffing 20 to a van !!!    How terrible.

[Lamkyong]

3 minutes ago, ToddinChonburi said:

No more stuffing 20 to a van !!!    How terrible.

plus the luggage

[CGW]

6 hours ago, robblok said:

Its been a couple of month already before this came into play so they did have time to act. They did of course nothing because they had hoped that it would not be enforced. 

It wasn't very well publicised though was it, certainly I had never heard of the law, nor had any of the locals where I live, though, as you say maybe they had heard but were hoping? though that wasn't my impression.

[CGW]

57 minutes ago, patsfangr said:

I am not a native of Thailand. I am, however, married to one. So I believe that gives me some right to speak out on this subject. First, let's recognize the reality that Thailand is a poor country. Many in the population can not afford even a motorbike for transportation. Such people often lack the education to get any work other than as a "day worker" in construction, or similar industry. Their only means of transportation, other than by foot, is to ride in the back of pickup trucks, often driven by other employees of the company they work for. This is most certainly a very risky mode of travel. But what are they to do? I don't have a simple answer to that question; nor do I think there is a simple answer to it. However, to summarily outlaw this important element of the economy seems to me to be both short sighted and insensitive. What am I missing?

 

Thailand is NOT! a poor country! they have more foreign exchange reserves than a lot of countries, including the UK, yes -  a lot of the people are poor and purposefully kept that way, the government prefers to "invest" the money in submarines and the like rather than invest the money in its people! A decent and functioning public transportation system should be in place!

Until there is a functioning government in place, not going to be a lot of changes! they will just come up with laws that further keep the poor folks subservient! Bit like a lot of places actually!

[robblok]

11 minutes ago, CGW said:

It wasn't very well publicised though was it, certainly I had never heard of the law, nor had any of the locals where I live, though, as you say maybe they had heard but were hoping? though that wasn't my impression.

If we are talking about the pickup seating thing.. no that was not done months ago. I am talking about vans and their seating restrictions. I did not even think about sitting in the back of pickups because i read that that rule was not enforced during songkran. 

 

So the problem seems to be 2 or 3 fold here.. Songkran normally leads to overbooking 1, extra people because they believed that sitting in the back of pickups would be a problem 2, and 3 less places in available minivans as seating arrangements would be checked.