General Prawit admits 20,000 Thais die on roads annually - motorcycle death worst in world

[khunpa]

1 hour ago, ianezy0 said:

Why does it take so long for this Country to realise what the rest of the folk have known for a long long time.

 

Due to the “Lose Face” Syndrome. Best to ignore issues and then just hope they automatically go away.

 

 

[faraday]

6 minutes ago, lust said:

Let me answer your question with another question. Why did you move to Thailand?

Why I moved here, is not pertinent to this thread.

 

Do you think that nothing should be done about the road deaths, & why are hard lessons that HG mentioned, somehow wrong to you?

 

Boundaries need to be set & enforced, however distasteful they might seem, but they will save lives.

Are you against that?

 

Over to you...

 

 

[klauskunkel]

The words come out of his mouth: 20,000 Thai road deaths cause 50 billion baht damage...

However, he still doesn't get it. And neither do any of the so called authorities.

[Oztruckie]

Ole mate needs to get out of his ivory tower and take a good hard look at the way thais drive and behave on the roads, no helmets, no lights, no license, drive wrong side of the road etc 

[Titan1962]

After living here for just over 4 yrs,I still get frustrated and angry at the lack of law enforcement when it comes to driving or riding.From kids not old enough to have a license riding 3 up,to idiots riding like their in a moto GP cars and transport vans passing on blind corners and running other motorists off the road.Most of these idiots are young immature males,the females seem to have a bit more common sense. But then I have to remind myself I am in Thailand,I am a falang without any real standing in the community,I have to jump through enough hoops just to live here.

So if the government,police,or parents don’t care why the hell should I. I have been riding bikes of all sizes from 80cc up 1700cc over a 40yr period,and while I am here in Thailand I just have to be extra,extra,extra careful because people here really don’t give a rats arse. Bikes don’t give way to pedestrians,cars don’t give way to bikes or pedestrians,trucks don’t give way to cars bikes or pedestrians,it’s a shit fight just to get around. And please don’t talk to me about U turns,or roundabouts,or zebra crossings it’s just beyond their capabilities to understand.

So I just try my best with the knowledge I have,and hopefully one of these idiots doesn’t take me out.

Its a simple fix,but beyond their capabilities at the moment.

 

 

 

[nodomino]

40,000 automobile deaths per year in the USA. . Double Thailand’s death rate but 4 times the population.  

[Cake Monster]

3 hours ago, Lungstib said:

3 years of Thai road deaths totals more then the number of US servicemen killed in 10 years of war in Vietnam. It was the high death total that eventually led to their withdrawal but no sign yet that Thai authorities are embarrassed by their high numbers.  No shame or sense of responsibility.

They have no shame or sense of responsibility, but still find the time to obtain and mention the amount of money lost to the Thai Economy through the carnage on the roads.

Very sad people who are pretending to be Human Beings.

[BobbyL]

3 hours ago, Radar501 said:

Circle the correct answer.

 

The Royal Thai Police Force is:

 

a. incompetent

b. Lazy

c. Corrupt

d. All of the above

Exactly this. It sounds like a nice speech from Prawit, but we all know nothing will be done solely because of the government and the police. 

[Chrisswe]

THAN THE QUESTION IS : WHAT HAS YOU THE MILTARY JUNTA AND GOVERNMENT DONE DURING THA LAST 5 YEARS !!???????

[Jimbo2014]

So now that 'we' have finally (after about half a million road deaths over 20 years) accepted this reality, what do 'we' intend to do about it?  The government has been "enacting measure since 2011"???.... one week crackdowns which dont lead to anything tangible.  Im hopefully not dying to see the next "enacted measure".

[fullcave]

4 hours ago, Handsome Gardener said:

Then an MOT system to ensure they are all roadworthy - I have seen some tyres that haven't had tread in years !

Not mention running lights! 

[Rocket Hawks]

Keyword being motorcycle deaths. If you have a car in Thailand, it’s one of the safest countries in the world. I did the math last year here on TV showing why this is the case but I’m too tired to do it again right now. 

 

It’s actually far mar dangerous to drive a car in America where you have draconian traffic laws. Purely by the numbers, your odds of getting in a car accident are much higher in America than they are in Thailand. This is for a variety of reasons but mostly due to the fact that cars are less prevalent in Thailand due to their extreme cost. A very basic $22k Mercedes in the US will cost you $90k here in Thailand for example. Cars are too expensive for “most” Thais, hence why you have such a high motorcycle density in Thailand and thus more motorcycle deaths. It makes sense that you would have more motorcycle deaths in a country where most of your population is driving a motorcycle right? VS in the US, almost no one drives a motorcycle. Hence death by motorcycle is relatively low.

 

Point being, if you stick to cars, Thailand is one of the safest places to drive in the world. Not only do they drive absurdly slow here compared to the US and Europe but your only competition on the road is motorcycles and small vehicles. You’re not having to go head to head with huge SUVS and Semis doing 100mph on a freeway.

[300sd]

4 hours ago, Radar501 said:

Circle the correct answer.

 

The Royal Thai Police Force is:

 

a. incompetent

b. Lazy

c. Corrupt

d. All of the above

Yes it's all of the above and more. These creeps are ruining thai people's lives, thai people's families. There needs to be an end to this scum. They fabricate crime for money. Innocent thais or foreigners go to prison for nothing. It's too much. It's ruining this whole country. 

[spidermike007]

And he almost looks proud. Just a few things to consider when driving here:

 

The police are not here to protect you. They do not care one iota about your well being, your safety, or traffic safety. Expect that. Do not employ them, unless absolutely necessary. 

 

If driving, especially on a motorbike, treat the activity as an act of war, in a sense that you may be mowed down or killed at any moment. Maintain eyes in the back of your head. Watch everyone. Expect craziness, insanity, lack of reason, and a complete lack of courtesy and respect on the roads, at all times. Expect cars and trucks to be coming at you in the wrong lane. Expect people to overtake you with the slimmest of margins. Expect trucks to be driving very slowly in the fast lane of a highway. If riding a motorbike, only do so if you have many years of experience. Especially on the southern islands, where huge numbers of foreigners leave Thailand in a wooden box. Wear the best helmet you can afford. And drive like a grandmother. This applies to ex-pats too. Bring along an international drivers license, or better yet a Thai drivers license. This helps you to avoid being fleeced by the local police franchisee, and allows you to give him the really, really hard time he well deserves. 

[Rocket Hawks]

5 hours ago, Lungstib said:

3 years of Thai road deaths totals more then the number of US servicemen killed in 10 years of war in Vietnam. It was the high death total that eventually led to their withdrawal but no sign yet that Thai authorities are embarrassed by their high numbers.  No shame or sense of responsibility.

 

40,000 people die in car accidents per year in America. No shame or responsibility I guess in America either? 5000 people have died in mass shootings in America this year as well. No shame or responsibility??? 

 

In the past 48hrs in America, the USA horrifically lost 34 people to mass shootings.

 

On average, across any 48hrs in America, they also lose…

 

500 to Medical errors

300 to the Flu

250 to Suicide

200 to Car Accidents

40 to Homicide via Handgun

 

Give the Thailand-bashing a rest. In the years I’ve been here in Thailand, I’ve never seen a car accident, I’ve never seen a death, I’ve never seen a violent crime committed, I’ve never seen anything that bad at all here in Thailand. Nothing compared to the amount of carnage and crime I saw regularly while living in California, USA. Thailand is super tame and frankly, super boring. Nothing exciting ever happens here in Thailand. Pick up the LA Times and read the crime section to see what I’m talking about. You won’t believe what you’re reading is actually real life in America. “Man found cooked alive in Bumblebee Tuna Oven”, “Well Respected Businessman Carried out Quadruple Homicide after discovering wife sleeping with Midget”, “Chinese Man Sledgehammered to death over Ginseng dispute”, “Golden State Serial Killer Caught, thought to have killed over 40 women”, etc...We don’t get headlines like this in Thailand. Thailand is boring.

[Curt1591]

Maybe if cop motorcycles, cars and trucks were used for something other than running errands?

Easily avoided traffic cams and checkpoints are Thailand's only methods of traffic enforcement.

God forbid they actually patrol!

 

[Sonhia]

Deaths could be dramatically reduced if Thai stop this I am ego image, follow the law with the police upholding the law, but both are lacking. Not rocket science, or maybe it is??? Thai like to be proud so they can brag about having the highest motorcycle death rates on this planet. Now tjat is something to blow their little plastic trumpet about...

[Paul Henry]

The 50 Billion is a gross under estimate of the cost to the economy. Check the per capita cost in other countries and this shows the 50 billion is another dart board number issued by the government.

[quadperfect]

I figure i have 3 or 4 close calls per day.  Its always the cars never bikers Usually with those mini vans and taxi drivers.

i dont think i ever had a close call in my home country usa. Not in 40 years of driving. But here its 3 or 4 per half hour on the roads.

Thais are insanely dangerouse on the roads. Its mad max all the way here.live or die its a day in a life here.

[Gandtee]

Why aren't schools/colleges where students on motorcycles are allowed on the premises forced to wear helmets or not be allowed on the premises? Why are there not more police outside schools/colleges to warn first then fine those not wearing helmets? why did the chicken cross the road?????

[White Christmas13]

2 hours ago, Chrisswe said:

THAN THE QUESTION IS : WHAT HAS YOU THE MILTARY JUNTA AND GOVERNMENT DONE DURING THA LAST 5 YEARS !!???????

Ask Steven100

[trainman34014]

Just another photo' opportunity with free lunch included !

[Redline]

9 hours ago, webfact said:

Thaivisa notes that in a long article police enforcement was not mentioned once. 

It is never mentioned-and the biggest part of the problem 

[manhood]

All the statements, especially from politicans are good for nothing as they all not come up with consequences to stop that dying on the roads......only blablabla

[dcnx]

And they will do absolutely nothing about it. 
 

Whatever law that they make dies at the hands of the police who do nothing.

 

Even then, you can’t change the mindset of these idiots on wheels. Natural selection works overtime here and it’s for the best. 

[londonthai]

Wikipedia quotes sources estimating 35k dead. 

Thai statistics dont include those dead within 30 days after an exident, as they do in the other countries statistics

[lvr181]

12 hours ago, JAG said:

appearances and actions are two different things.

Yes, appearances happen, actions don't!

 

Nothing changes.

[Vacuum]

14 hours ago, Rocket Hawks said:

You won’t believe what you’re reading is actually real life in America. “Man found cooked alive in Bumblebee Tuna Oven”, “Well Respected Businessman Carried out Quadruple Homicide after discovering wife sleeping with Midget”, “Chinese Man Sledgehammered to death over Ginseng dispute”, “Golden State Serial Killer Caught, thought to have killed over 40 women”, etc...We don’t get headlines like this in Thailand. Thailand is boring.

I'm happy we don't.

[hotchilli]

20 hours ago, webfact said:

What these measures were exactly was not specified.

I would start with sacking the transport/roads minister...

get someone in who can do the job

[Classic Ray]

The motivation of the Thai police can be found in their actions:-

 

1. Checkpoints. Concentrate on fining people for no helmet or licence, do no checks on whether bike insured or stolen or defective. Let people ride off after paying so no safety improvement. Result - Profit

 

2. Road collisions. Check only licence and insurance, if that. Negotiate damage payment from guilty party. Result - Profit

 

3. Patrol. Costs money for petrol and hot on the streets, so not done except for visits to certain business premises. Patrol result - loss, visits result - Profit.

 

4. Youths motorcycle racing. Seize bikes and arrest and fine riders. Return motorcycles so they can be raced again after payment of storage fee. Result - Profit.

 

Anyone seeing a pattern here?