News Forum - 2 people per hour were killed in road accidents in Thailand in 2020

[Manu]

4 hours ago, Soidog said:

 Kids caught not wearing a helmet shouldn’t just get a 200 Baht fine.

I believe you forgot something. It should be:

"Kids caught not wearing a helmet should not just get a 200 bath fine...And once paid on the spot, the police should not let them go on their bike again without a helmet". Not sure actually if it is all over Thailand, but on the island where I am, you keep the receipt of your fine and it allows you to carry on driving without a helmet for 24h, if you get stopped again, you just show that receipt to the police and off you go.

But as usual, if anyone need to be blamed, it is obviously not the kids but the parents. I told that story before but it is just the perfect example: I saw a while back the dad driving the bike, the mum at the back and inbetween 2 kids not more than 5 years old, all wearing a mask, not one a helmet. What are these poor kids supposed to learn with parents like that?

A year and something back, I saw this 17 years old kid on his bike hitting a car driving the opposite direction. The shock was so brutal the bike caught fire and was burned down to the ground. The kid died on the spot. The few of us who witnessed the accident all agreed on one thing: a helmet would have probably saved his life.

Edited March 27, 2022 by Manu

[AdvocatusDiaboli]

5 hours ago, Thaiger said:

A Thai health foundation has found that two people were killed in road accidents every hour

Maybe a better word for accidents here would be stupidities …. Because everyone knows that with all the poor driving and drink driving … things won’t change. Maybe need Joe Ferrari and like to do their real job, and police the roads all the time, and not just when tourists are here.

[Soidog]

53 minutes ago, Manu said:

I believe you forgot something. It should be:

"Kids caught not wearing a helmet should not just get a 200 bath fine...And once paid on the spot, the police should not let them go on their bike again without a helmet". Not sure actually if it is all over Thailand, but on the island where I am, you keep the receipt of your fine and it allows you to carry on driving without a helmet for 24h, if you get stopped again, you just show that receipt to the police and off you go.

But as usual, if anyone need to be blamed, it is obviously not the kids but the parents. I told that story before but it is just the perfect example: I saw a while back the dad driving the bike, the mum at the back and inbetween 2 kids not more than 5 years old, all wearing a mask, not one a helmet. What are these poor kids supposed to learn with parents like that?

A year and something back, I saw this 17 years old kid on his bike hitting a car driving the opposite direction. The shock was so brutal the bike caught fire and was burned down to the ground. The kid died on the spot. The few of us who witnessed the accident all agreed on one thing: a helmet would have probably saved his life.

It’s the same all over regarding the 24 hour limit for the ticket. I’m told the same is true if you get a speeding ticket. I once asked what level of crime does this practice cease. If I murder someone and get caught, can I then murder as many people as I want in the next 24 hours! The Thai I asked told me not to be crazy. To which I replied “Me be crazy?  WTF”

[Cathat]

I don't think anything can ever be done about thai driving standards and the appalling accident rate.

the roads have been vastly improved and the safety features of cars also,even motorcycles with the introduction of anti lock brake's on them has increased the safety of them yet still the figures remain sky high.

it's not the road quality or the vehicles being used on them.

strict law enforcement and a national mental reset would be required but the chances of that happening are slim to non existent.

.

 

 

Edited March 27, 2022 by Cathat

[JJJ]

10 hours ago, Soidog said:

As I said above, it’s these sad cases that need more publicity. I think such images would have a far greater impact on young kids than publishing the numbers who died and maybe went on to live a better next life. Kids caught not wearing a helmet shouldn’t just get a 200 Baht fine. They should be taken to see such sad cases. The really odd part is that they will wear a mask to protect them from Covid while in the open air at 60km/hr, but not wear a helmet. Inscrutable people.

Also poor roads impact motos more. My win from my condo to office almost whipped out because a road patch they did 3 weeks ago had already disintegrated and is basically just loose gravel now (along Sathorn Rd). 

[Ted]

21 hours ago, Soidog said:

I think the government should stop focusing on road deaths and do far more to publicise those who are severely disfigured of disabled as a result of road accidents. The dead are often the lucky ones. Show the beautiful girl or budding athletes who is now disfigured or confined to a wheelchair sucking soup through a straw for the rest of their life. This is the real tragedy and is many more times higher than the number killed. 

Yup and they don't have a welfare state, or the means to buy a proper insurance, helping the direct affected or his/her family whos life will also be forever changed

[Smiler]

I noticed after the eye doctor was killed lots more people stopped at the pedestrian crossings, but now it has already been forgotten and crossing the road is back to being a lottery with your life.