Pattaya: crossing the street to see your Thai bf

[thrillbill]

For you GWM visiting Pattaya this winter- beware of the new designated pedistrian crossings: WATCH (great youtube clip) :hello1:

[youtube:1ery1bvg]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LsptD_9_kbE[/youtube:1ery1bvg]

[bao-bao]

The examples in the video were probably more the norm than exceptions. If a driver could see there was definitely nobody off the curb I could see doing what many folks do and make a rolling stop and continue through, but when there are people crossing - as an old friend used to say "Jeez Louise!" As I'd suggested myself on 16 October (Why Did The Tourist Cross The Road?) you have to be alert and assume nobody's GOING to stop for you there.

Loved the clip - thanks, TJ!

You'd think the BIB would be right on to this as a potentially very lucrative source of "fines".

They could make more with traffic violation fines in 1 hour than they get from a Boyztown bar owner in a week !!!


:laughing3: :laughing3:

They could make more with traffic violation fines in 1 hour than they get from a Boyztown bar owner in a week !!! :laughing3: :laughing3:

That all depends on which Boyztown owner or ex - owner was paying them off!

[cdnmatt]

If you think that's bad, give Hanoi a try. :-)

[youtube:3rb0seuu]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eC4BN9kInXg[/youtube:3rb0seuu]

[krobbie]

Admittedly it takes some agility to cross the road. My local death trap is in Sathorn outside Robinson's Department store. The trick is to get a toe hold on the crossing and look like you own it. As soon as both feet (one of mine being attached to an artificial limb) are on the crossing in most cases the traffic will stop. I say most cases as you know those on motocy have their own rules ... which actually mean none at all as none have been taught.

Perhaps the many millions of baht should have included television advertisements telling people they will be fined for not stopping at traffic lights and follow up with actively policing those intersections. It's not as if there aren't enough traffic police in Bangkok.

How hard can it be?

Amazing Thailand, a country with some of the most polite people in the world, but put them behind the steering wheel of a vehicle and a complete transformation comes about turning them into in some cases the complete opposite!

[cdnmatt]

Amazing Thailand, a country with some of the most polite people in the world, but put them behind the steering wheel of a vehicle and a complete transformation comes about turning them into in some cases the complete opposite!

It's because none of them have a driver's license. Getting financing for a vehicle is fairly easy here, so they seem to be under the assumption if they can get a car, they must be able to drive. :-) That, and why bother getting a license? It's easier to just fork over 200 baht to the cops every couple months when they pull you over.

That's why a couple years back, when Bangkok police did a blitz for traffic violations, in 72 hours they managed to catch 70,000 people without a license. Really, 70,000 without a license within 72 hours. Wow, eh? If you did a blitz like that in Canada, Aus, UK, US, or wherever, you'd probably get a dozen without a license. Or maybe a couple dozen, but definitely nowhere near 70,000.

[arsenal]

The video is very funny. But who, really expected anything else.

[mahjongguy]

There are two of these crosswalk now on Jomtien Beach.

Yesterday I pushed the button on one of them and the lights went into blinking yellow mode and was stuck in that mode for the rest of the day. I pushed the button on the other crosswalk and nothing happened at all.

It's just as well. Any poor innocent who gets the green light to cross and confidently steps out to cross the street is gonna get creamed.

At US$100,000 per crossing these installations have lined a lot of pockets, and it's very cynical of the city to put them up without stationing a traffic cop for a month at each location to enforce some reasonable level of compliance.

An experienced traffic engineer would have proposed that the signal lights flash yellow all the time. No red cycle, no green cycle. No push buttons, no false implication that it's actually safe to cross. Just a big bright warning to all involved that here be a crosswalk.

[Beachlover]

If you think that's bad, give Hanoi a try. :-)

Heh... This Hanoi Street Crossing video is not an exaggeration at all. Crossing the street in Hanoi really is like this. In fact the video is sugar-coating it because it only has motorcycles and bicycles but normally, you also have to face down cars, vans, 4WDs and trucks, which are much scarier. Best thing to do is find a little old lady and follow her across the road. :-)


At US$100,000 per crossing these installations have lined a lot of pockets, and it's very cynical of the city to put them up without stationing a traffic cop for a month at each location to enforce some reasonable level of compliance.
Yeah, it's amazing the government/authorities get anything done over there isn't it? Bunch of clowns. No sense of responsibility at all.