Poll: If the baht bus fare was doubled to 20 baht would you ride them any less?

[david555]

4 hours ago, Beggar said:

The government did a lot to reduce these increased fares. I think it is not very helpful to ignore this and to support the opposite behavior again. 

 

Long time the fare was 5 Baht and got increased several years ago to 10 Baht. Now several posters here say that they wouldn't have a problem if they increase it to 20 Baht. But you have to see that many locals have to use the Baht busses too and for them such an increase could have a bigger impact. So best would be to keep 10 Baht for locals and charge 20 or more Baht for people looking like foreigners. Not really...

Understanding your reasoning …., but same time you are promoting the double pricing for us foreigners ...like a small restaurant eating place which give us me & Thai GF Thai menu map , and when me alone i get the English one ….. nice ….if only the prices where a loud different up...

 

That I don't like as they knew me as we took many times a meal together me & GF , just not going there anymore ….also the place does not exist anymore there

[Jingthing]

5 minutes ago, david555 said:

Understanding your reasoning …., but same time you are promoting the double pricing for us foreigners ...like a small restaurant eating place which give us me & Thai GF Thai menu map , and when me alone i get the English one ….. nice ….if only the prices where a loud different up...

 

That I don't like as they knew me as we took many times a meal together me & GF , just not going there anymore ….also the place does not exist anymore there

I'm not promoting anything except that I think people should pay the correct fare, whatever that happens to be. I do understand there is a good bit of ambiguity in the baht bus pricing that of course works to the driver's advantage especially with tourists and perhaps some guilt ridden residents suffering from some kind of modern variation of the white man's burden.

[david555]

6 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I've lived here well over 10 years riding the buses the entire time. 

So first line rectified... good  ???? and thanks for being supporter of our baht busses system as long time user ..55555

[Jingthing]

1 minute ago, david555 said:

So first line rectified... good  ???? and thanks for being supporter of our baht busses system as long time user ..55555

Overall it's a great system and being CHEAP is a big part of that greatness. 20 baht would not be so cheap and nobody is expecting any kind of improvement in service to be related to any price rise, so that would make the system less great. But bringing this topic up is kind of an elephant in the room kind of thing. Do people think it will still be 10 baht in 20 years if they are still running?

[david555]

5 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

I'm not promoting anything except that I think people should pay the correct fare, whatever that happens to be. I do understand there is a good bit of ambiguity in the baht bus pricing that of course works to the driver's advantage especially with tourists and perhaps some guilt ridden residents suffering from some kind of modern variation of the white man's burden.

Sorry , maybe I made a mistake as this was a answer to member Beggar about his answer 

[david555]

10 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Overall it's a great system and being CHEAP is a big part of that greatness. 20 baht would not be so cheap and nobody is expecting any kind of improvement in service to be related to any price rise, so that would make the system less great. But bringing this topic up is kind of an elephant in the room kind of thing. Do people think it will still be 10 baht in 20 years if they are still running?

May I remark I only defend that 20 baht on real long rides..!!

Hence splitting the jomtien route at the Pattaya  school crossing ….and not forcing squeezing another 10 baht out of your pocket …. it is just my personal solution accepting that old unwritten rule as I find it fair 

 

[JaiLai]

1 hour ago, Jingthing said:

I've lived here well over 10 years riding the buses the entire time. 

why not get a scooter?

[jacko45k]

2 hours ago, Jingthing said:

I've lived here well over 10 years riding the buses the entire time. 

Just for 10 baht.....!

[Beggar]

4 hours ago, fforest1 said:

If the fare was 20 baht it would slow things down a lot having to wait on all the Indians hanging for group discounts......And no I am not joking here......They already do this at 10 baht some times....

Great people the Indians. Such people keep the inflation down. 

[Jingthing]

I don't know but I'm starting to feel they haven't raised the fare for the sake of the poorer Thai people that ride them. Looking at world news raises in transport fares or fuel costs can spark problems. I also think double pricing on such a visible part of Pattaya tourist culture would be bad international public relations. Of course any Thai with any basic minimum wage job can get a loan for a bike and most do. 

[brewsterbudgen]

10 baht is ridiculously low; 20 baht is fine.  

[beautifulthailand99]

On 11/17/2019 at 8:54 PM, sunnyboy2018 said:

I would use them about the same which is infrequently these days. I would use the baht buses more often if people were not packed like sardines full of, smoking drinking ill tempered russian with babies in prams,  jabbering indians bent double in the aisle and men of all nationalities manspreading, exhibiting yellowed toe nails and varicose veins and armpit hair. The baht buses are now dangerously overcrowded, uncomfortable and undignified. I would prefer to pay 50 baht for a properly regulated service with a maximum of 6 people on each bench seat and only two standing on the back rack. Reform of the baht buses would put them all into public service and extend their routes. Currently they function as private taxis with dozens waiting on Cozy Beach Road hiring  out to the highest bidder and the largest groups. The scenes at the queue at the Pattaya Tai/Sai song police box are like a scene from hell reminiscent of WW2 german cattle trucks...all we need now is the use of viscous dogs to herd people into the cramped death traps. The once free wheeling fun transport system has been reduced to third world hell.

You're getting old and tired. Life is a Cabaret old chum !

[beautifulthailand99]

On 11/19/2019 at 3:23 AM, fforest1 said:

Also the POWERS THAT BE.....HATE ......the baht buses......They would like nothing more than to get rid of them all......

 

THE POWERS THAT BE......HATE for people to have ULTRA CHEAP transportation......But they HATE the baht buses more.......

If the baht bus fares were 20 baht it would make the baht buses stronger and this can not be allowed to happen in their eyes...So the baht bus fare WILL NOT be going up any time soon.....You can take this to the bank.....

Sometimes this feels like an OAP care home with some random old geezer shouting at the telly... NURSE ! NURSE !

[Leaver]

Interesting poll.

 

Due to taxis not using their meters here, and just throwing a crazy price at you, even for a short journey, people would have no choice than to pay 20, 30, or even 40 baht to a baht bus driver. 

[jacko45k]

11 hours ago, beautifulthailand99 said:

You're getting old and tired. Life is a Cabaret old chum !

More of a circus here! With many clown turns. 

[mrblonde]

If 10 baht is enough to cause you to change your normal routine, then you shouldn’t be in a city where everything (especially love) costs money 

[Pattaya46]

8 hours ago, Leaver said:

Due to taxis not using their meters here, and just throwing a crazy price at you, even for a short journey, people would have no choice than to pay 20, 30, or even 40 baht to a baht bus driver. 

As you say, many people use them mainly for a short journey,

so in many cases they could just walk  and save these precious 20-40 baht 

[swissie]

Well, that's a "no brainer". A price increase of 100% overnight? The long predicted demise of Pattaya would become fact. Farangs leaving in droves, heading for South America.
Until that happens, lets "enjoy each miserable day".

[Nyezhov]

2 minutes ago, swissie said:

Well, that's a "no brainer". A price increase of 100% overnight? The long predicted demise of Pattaya would become fact. Farangs leaving in droves, heading for South America.
Until that happens, lets "enjoy each miserable day".

Well speaking personally, I would pack up and leave before I paid the extra 30 cents!

[Jingthing]

In the interest of accuracy a 100 percent increase of 10 to 20 baht really isn't about just 10 baht unless you only take one ride. 

 

To illustrate this I typically spend 30 to 40 baht daily on baht bus rides. 

 

So averaging that to 35 baht a day 35 x 365 is 12775 baht. So annualized a 10 baht raise in fares translates to an annual increase of roughly 12775. 

 

Under current exchange rates that's 423 US dollars. 

 

So that puts things into a more realistic perspective.

[shdmn]

On 11/18/2019 at 8:43 PM, david555 said:

Fair enough , it was 10 years ago an understanding so, maybe you where not in Pattaya yet ?? ????

I have an unfrozen pension already more than 10 years....so I favor them drivers a little too.....as it is a real long ride ,but i can understand your position too .

 

Besides i don't see it as a tip .., just a fair pay for a real long ride , must be because I come from communist's Europe as some Brits call it …..5555

I have been told it was 10 baht from Jomtien to Pattaya Klang.  So three different people are saying 3 different things here.  One says Pattaya Tai (South), another says Pattaya Klang (Central), and another says Pattaya Nua (North).

 

I have ridden from Jomtien to T21 at Pattaya Nua and only paid 10 baht.  But I think a lot of drivers will try get 20 for that.  Some may say something and some may not.

[Jingthing]

3 minutes ago, shdmn said:

I have been told it was 10 baht from Jomtien to Pattaya Klang.  So three different people are saying 3 different things here.  One says Pattaya Tai (South), another says Pattaya Klang (Central), and another says Pattaya Nua (North).

 

I have ridden from Jomtien to T21 at Pattaya Nua and only paid e 10 baht.  But I think a lot of drivers will try get 20 for that.  Some may say something and some may not.

Yes that's the way to figure out the correct fare. I did a long thread all about this issue soliciting reports and testing myself. The conclusion? About 95 to 99 percent of the time 10 baht will be accepted from Jomtien to Pattaya North road without pushback. Of course you should pay with exact change and never ask the drivers about fares. 

[Leaver]

15 hours ago, Pattaya46 said:

As you say, many people use them mainly for a short journey,

so in many cases they could just walk  and save these precious 20-40 baht 

I do not have any mobility issues, and have no problem walking short journeys, but from Dolphin roundabout to Walking Street, in the heat of the day, I jump on a baht bus. 

 

Also, many footpaths here do not make for a pleasant walk, so I can understand people using cheap and regular transport, even for a short journey.

[JulesMad]

On 11/18/2019 at 8:26 AM, JaiLai said:

i would rather walk than ever get on a baht bus - despise them.

 

other drivers will understand where i'm coming from, they are the worst!

Could be a rather long walk, if you go out in Jomtien and live in Naklua ????

[kingofthemountain]

On 11/18/2019 at 9:00 AM, DannyCarlton said:

Smoking is banned on baht busses.

Standing also

As usual the problem is the non enforcement

 

https://thepattayanews.com/2018/07/06/new-head-of-pattaya-baht-bus-council-to-enforce-the-rules-bring-new-rules-such-as-no-standing-on-the-back-of-baht-busses/  

[kingofthemountain]

On 11/18/2019 at 2:30 AM, Jingthing said:

I guess a reason against it is that it would be too high a spike for some local Thais but then that might entering the double pricing zone that used to prevail here (5 baht for Thais, 10 for foreigners). Which would be nasty.

AFAIK the thais pay actualy the same bathbus fare as the farang

i see all the time thai people give 10 bhts to the driver 

[Jingthing]

12 minutes ago, kingofthemountain said:

AFAIK the thais pay actualy the same bathbus fare as the farang

i see all the time thai people give 10 bhts to the driver 

Yes, the fare is 10 baht for ALL. I never said any differently!

 

YEARS AGO, there definitely was double pricing where Thais paid 5 and white people 10. For real.

 

NOT NOW. 

[kingofthemountain]

On 11/18/2019 at 9:07 AM, Jingthing said:

Yes, I agree.

 

I did predict that riding them as frequently or nearly as frequently would "win" this poll.

But there are some factors where people might reduce riding or stop.

For example I notice many people ride them for a few blocks or a distance that would take 5 or 10 minutes to walk.

I don't do that unless perhaps if it was raining and I didn't have an umbrella or carrying heavy packages.

So some people would probably reduce those "discretionary" rides due to higher fares.

I suppose some people that depend on the baht buses as their main form of transportation may be nudged into buying a motorbike due to a fare increase. But 10 to 20, I don't think very many.

I can imagine that it would hurt some poor Thai workers but that isn't a demographic reading this forum.

But otherwise clearly most people would keep riding the buses for longer rides as there is no affordable alternative (without a bike). 

Normally businesses push prices up when rising them won't hurt demand. 

So why hasn't the baht bus cooperative raised prices?

Not that I'm complaining. I'm happy to keep paying the 10 baht.

 

Here's a restaurant example of the power of pricing. 

I have a current favorite restaurant that is kind of expensive for my budget. But it's so good that I keep going there, like twice a week, even though the check bin is kind of painful. So for me anyway, this place has priced perfectly.

 

Now IF they suddenly DOUBLED their prices, I don't think I would go there ever again. 

 

For most people, 10 baht is seen as a bargain, and 20 isn't even painful. They would need to go higher than that to lose many riders. 

Falang fink tooo mut  ????

[sunnyboy2018]

On 11/17/2019 at 11:29 PM, RedPill said:

Not sure about that ... as long as I can remember, the Baht bus in Pattaya was always very easy to use to get around on a night out.

 

I couldn't really say anything bad about it.

 

It definitely is a great way to move around for 10 Baht ... as long as it may last for that price.

 

 

It used to be and still is sometimes but they are too overcrowded now. The buses starting off from Pattaya Tai Police box have seven or eight sitting each side, plus people crouched/ standing in the aisle and people standing at the back.  The 3rd worlders think its normal to be packed in like sardines. Other problems are drinkers, smokers, and surly Russian man spreaders.

[sunnyboy2018]

34 minutes ago, kingofthemountain said:

Standing also

As usual the problem is the non enforcement

 

https://thepattayanews.com/2018/07/06/new-head-of-pattaya-baht-bus-council-to-enforce-the-rules-bring-new-rules-such-as-no-standing-on-the-back-of-baht-busses/  

But the Indians stand inside the buses too.