PHUKET Public Health held a seminar with representatives of police stations from all over the island this week to speed gains in road toll reduction.
The death toll on Phuket's roads has been reduced from 200 in 2007 to 154 in 2008 to 140 in 2009.The toll for this year stood at 113 to the end of October.
The safety helmet campaign, which goes all over Phuket from January 1, is seen as being a boost for reduction of injuries and deaths.
Dr Wiwat Sitamanoch, Deputy Director of Phuket Public Health, said that greater enforcement of laws on Phuket's roads would help but Phuket Police Commander Pekad Tantipong said that often, 100 percent enforcement of the law failed.
People first need to be convinced of the benefits of changing their habits, he said. Good road design, slow-down ribs on the road surface and the obliteration of traffic blackspots were all helping to reduce the toll.
Trucks remain one problem, with checks on drivers needing to be carried out more regularly. The seminar heard of one truck driver who killed once on the roads, and then killed a second time through lack of attention to road safety.
The woman in the photo album came off her motorcycle when she failed to avoid a pink bus in Chalong, southern Phuket, at the weekend. Her helmet was in the motorcycle basket. She suffered only minor injuries.
Phuketwan supports Mothers or Motorcycles (MoM) an action group pursuing greater road safety awareness and helmet use.
Phuket, World's Best of the Best for Expat LivingThe death toll on Phuket's roads has been reduced from 200 in 2007 to 154 in 2008 to 140 in 2009.The toll for this year stood at 113 to the end of October.
The safety helmet campaign, which goes all over Phuket from January 1, is seen as being a boost for reduction of injuries and deaths.
Dr Wiwat Sitamanoch, Deputy Director of Phuket Public Health, said that greater enforcement of laws on Phuket's roads would help but Phuket Police Commander Pekad Tantipong said that often, 100 percent enforcement of the law failed.
People first need to be convinced of the benefits of changing their habits, he said. Good road design, slow-down ribs on the road surface and the obliteration of traffic blackspots were all helping to reduce the toll.
Trucks remain one problem, with checks on drivers needing to be carried out more regularly. The seminar heard of one truck driver who killed once on the roads, and then killed a second time through lack of attention to road safety.
The woman in the photo album came off her motorcycle when she failed to avoid a pink bus in Chalong, southern Phuket, at the weekend. Her helmet was in the motorcycle basket. She suffered only minor injuries.
Phuketwan supports Mothers or Motorcycles (MoM) an action group pursuing greater road safety awareness and helmet use.
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"Phuket Police Commander Pekad Tantipong said that often, 100 percent enforcement of the law failed "
Heck, if we had even just 20% traffic law enforcement, the results would be significant.
As it stands now, there is virtually no law enforcement at all. Take for example the police check point in Karon, coming downhill from Patong. Every time there's a check, there are numerous people waiting on top of the hill for the police to leave.
Everyone knows this, including the police. If they were serious about catching offenders, they would round up and check everyone trying to avoid the check point.
But they don't.
Posted by Chris on November 11, 2010 16:17