Cops want the streets to have no shame.Stopping speeding drivers has become top

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Cops want the streets to have no shame
Stopping speeding drivers has become top priority
Published: 4/04/2011 at 12:00 AM
Bangkok Post: Newspaper section: News
 
Two recent horrific road accidents have prompted city police to revive their campaign against speeding drivers to make the streets safer for motorists and pedestrians.

Metropolitan Police Bureau deputy chief Panu Kerdlarppol said policemen have had difficulties enforcing the speed limit. But he saw no other effective way to reduce senseless deaths than to force drivers to slow down.

He said the two recent accidents reaffirmed the need for city police to put new efforts into cracking down on speeding drivers.

In one of the accidents on Dec 27, eight people were killed after a passenger van they were riding in was hit by a passenger car allegedly speeding on the elevated Don Mueang tollway. The victims were thrown out of the van and fell to their death when the vehicle crashed into the tollway barrier after colliding with the car.

On Mar 25, a 19-year-old man was accused of driving his Porsche at speed into a Lao girl on Pathum Thani-Bang Bua Thong highway in Pathum Thani. The impact from the crash was so severe it cut the girl's body in half.

The drivers of the two cars _ Orachorn Thephasadin Na Ayudhya and Peerapol Thaksinthaweesap _ allegedly confessed to driving at high speed when the accidents took place.

Mr Peerapol reportedly admitted to police interrogators he was driving at 120 kilometres per hour when his Porsche ran into 17-year-old Kambai Inthilat.

Pol Maj-Gen Panu said this speed was allowed only on motorways.

The road on which the accident occurred was a highway where motorists are limited to 90 kph.

The driving speed in cities and municipalities is limited to 80 kph.

Pol Maj Gen Panu, who oversees road traffic in Bangkok, says most motorists refuse to comply with the limit.

Traffic policemen trying to enforce the legal speed limit within urban areas often hear arguments from violators that the rule is obsolete because new automobile technology enabled drivers to travel faster and more safely.

Police, therefore, have been lenient in enforcing the legal speed limit and make arrests only if motorists are found to exceed 110 kph, he said.

The deputy police chief said the urban speed limit in Thailand was higher than that in other countries. Singapore, for example, has fixed the speed limit in the city at 50 kph.

He said, however, that the law alone could not make people aware of the importance of speed limits. People need to be educated to understand why speed limits are necessary.

A study on the land traffic law by the Thai Health Promotion Foundation explained why drivers had to slow down, he said.

From the research, Pol Maj-Gen Panu said people in the front seat of a vehicle with a safety belt on were found to be safe in a head-on collision if the speed did not exceed 70 kph. This was the same in a side-on collision if the speed limit did not exceed 50 kph.

The study also showed greater driving speeds resulted in a higher chance of road deaths. At 30 kph, pedestrians who were hit by cars had a 90% chance of surviving, but at 50 kph, they had an 85% chance of dying.

The study also said a speeding car needed a longer distance to stop when when braking.

At a speed of 30 kph, drivers required 13 metres to stop when hitting the brakes. When the velocity increased to just 60 kph, drivers needed up to 36 metres to stop.

Pol Maj Gen Panu said he believed the speed limit of 80 kph was still appropriate for most urban driving.

Although the number of road accidents in Bangkok last year dropped to 37,985 from 41,800 in 2009, police still needed to continue putting in more effort to control speeding drivers, he said.

Police work would be more efficient if they were better equipped with such devices as speed detectors and traffic cameras. Pol Maj Gen Panu said some countries set aside 10% from road construction budgets to buy these devices to help the police enforce traffic laws.

This was an idea that Thailand should consider following, Pol Maj Gen Panu said.

Parents also played an important role in helping curb accidents caused by speeding cars by teaching their teenage children about safe driving.

Pol Maj Gen Panu said he had taught his children about the traffic law and how to drive properly and he would not allow them to go out on to the streets on their own until he was confident they could drive safely.

[nookiebear]

'Hot Air'I'm afraid!!

[mxyzptlk]

Proper driving tests instead of the existing mickey-mouse tests.....that would effectively remove 96% of drivers from the road.

[boloa]

Proper driving tests instead of the existing mickey-mouse tests.....that would effectively remove 96% of drivers from the road.

One of the most naive statements I have ever read about improving driving in Thailand .Mindset,corruption and the Police are all to blame not whether you have the taken the appropriate test !!!!

[Prakhonchai Nick]

I've said it before and I'll say it again. The penalties for all motoring offences need to be very harsh. and they must be strictly enforced. None of your 100/200bt backhanders.

10,000bt minimum for 1st offence doubling every time. That would keep motorists in order. And before anyone says the fines are too high, just realise that you do NOT have to pay if you drive within the law.

And if the police were to receive 10% or 20% of the fines they might just start doing their job.

[mxyzptlk]

Proper driving tests instead of the existing mickey-mouse tests.....that would effectively remove 96% of drivers from the road.

One of the most naive statements I have ever read about improving driving in Thailand .Mindset,corruption and the Police are all to blame not whether you have the taken the appropriate test !!!!

Maybe I am naive.....maybe one day I'll be a know-all and then will be able to offer a more appropriate opinion....

[nookiebear]

Dave none of us will ever know as much as Boloa

[boloa]

Proper driving tests instead of the existing mickey-mouse tests.....that would effectively remove 96% of drivers from the road.

One of the most naive statements I have ever read about improving driving in Thailand .Mindset,corruption and the Police are all to blame not whether you have the taken the appropriate test !!!!

Maybe I am naive.....maybe one day I'll be a know-all and then will be able to offer a more appropriate opinion....

This was just an observation after living in Thailand for 10 years,you could make the test as hard as you like but it won't stop people driving fast or without due care and attention.I also found the driving just as bad in the UK the last time I was there,bad driving is something humans do and its just not limited to Thailand.

[mxyzptlk]

I don't think the driving in the UK is as bad as it is here, but I agree there are a lot of nutters on the road in the UK...

[boloa]

Dave none of us will ever know as much as Boloa

People who post a lot on forums are usually opinionated ,kettle and black comes to mind Nookie   

[nookiebear]

I havent a clue what you are talking about

[boloa]

I havent a clue what you are talking about

    

[boloa]

I tried to do some research to find out statistically who are the worlds worst drives

Some say Italians others go for Mexicans,Americans ,Asians,Australians ,Chinese or even the Russians.

So the only assumption I can come up with is stupidity is universal   

[nookiebear]

I think drivers here are a lot worse than Italians

[urleft]

Looks like this is vid of the aftermath,

Not for those with weak stomachs.

http://imageshack.us/clip/my-videos/198/6psh.mp4/