New Year holiday accidents

[ThaiHome]

Almost 85% of the fatalities were motorcycle accidents and I bet most of those were drunk 18-30 year old males driving way too fast.

 

TH

[Pom Michael]

Where's Doxyblue when you need him?

 

What is the per capital yearly road death toll in other similar countries - just to give this a perspective.

[Flashermac]

The victims are usually on motorcycles, but it's not always their fault. My Mrs had a nephew who was killed some years back when an arsehole truck driver high on something or other roared down a narrow bridge and ran over everybody coming the other way.

 

 

[dddave]

Every year, the Thai media jumps on the New Year and Songkran fatality stats with nice little daily box scores. What I've always wanted to know is what are the stats for normal weekends and weekdays so there is a basis for comparison.

Anybody find a source?

[Flashermac]

I've been told the Phuket Gazette has been asked not to report the traffic fatalities. Don't want to frighten the tourists.

 

 

[TroyinEwa/Perv]

*If* KS's number of 10k is close....that is around 27 people a day who die. The numbers over the 7 days of Songkran and New Year and substantially more than that. I have no proof of 10k a year though so can't be certain. Don't know where to look either.

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

"What I've always wanted to know is what are the stats for normal weekends and weekdays so there is a basis for comparison."

 

"Thailand has the highest rate of road fatalities in the world at 40 deaths for every 100,000 people, or 2.9 people dying an hour"

http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-13383701.html

 

"Each year, there are more than 13,000 traffic-related deaths or an average of 35 deaths per day, with more than one million injuries."

http://www.orientexpat.com/forum/20203-thailand-in-top-15-for-traffic-related-accidents/

 

Assuming 13K yearly deaths, that makes an average of 250 for a 7-day period.

 

BTW, this bit is pretty much spot on:

 

For the record, the causes of the problem are:

 

* Socially acceptable drink driving

* People don't actually learn how to drive properly when getting their license

* Rules of the road are simply ignored e.g. red lights are pretty much meaningless to the average Thai driver

* Reckless male drivers, overtaking into oncoming traffic. The bigger car has right of way

* Pedestrian crossings are seen as an inconvenience to drivers, so drivers don't stop for pedestrians

* Total lack of enforcement of the highway code

* Police apathy and corruption

 

Sanuk!

 

[TroyinEwa/Perv]

There we go.......still well well above 35 deaths a day during these periods. Using 2009 Songkran numbers.....that averaged to just over 53 per day.

[The_Munchmaster]

In 2005 there were *12,858 road accident fatalities in Thailand.

 

The UK has about the same population as Thailand and in 2005 there were 3,201 road accident fatalities, i.e, about 1/4 of the number of deaths as in Thailand.

 

*This is the police figure so could be much higher.

[TroyinEwa/Perv]

New Years 2010 after 6 days

 

309 deaths and 3,563 injuries in 3,289 road accidents nationwide