Click a thumbnail to view more photographs
Cars Crash in Phuket Underpass: Tunnel Blocked for Over Two Hours
By Sert Tongdee Thursday, July 2, 2015
PHUKET: Two cars crashed inside Phuket's first traffic underpass last night, sparking concerns about safety and the quality of driving skills on the holiday island.
Police handled the emergency by blocking the tunnel at Central Festival Phuket for two-and-a-half hours until both cars - one of them flipped on its side in the smash - were removed and the flow of vehicles could resume.
While the emergency was being addressed, traffic flowing in both directions was diverted around the tunnel.
Both drivers were slightly injured in the shunt about 7.30pm that came as the cars, both Toyotas, were heading north from Chalong Circle.
Officers from Vichit Police Station are likely to further question the drivers today to understand how such a crash could happen.
Passing through an underpass should be so simple and straightforward, provided vehicles do not tailgate each other.
The underpass has been open since April. Minor incidents have alarmed people who fear what might happen in a tunnel pileup.
A second underpass is under construction about one kilometre further along the bypass road at Phuket's Tesco Lotus intersection.
|
Comments
Comments have been disabled for this article.
It was only a matter of time, I am surprised it took so long. Driving standards in Phuket and Thailand as a whole are shocking as the stats show (third most road deaths per head in the world).
Until driver education and law enforcement are increased, no change will happen. But then, we all know this already.
Posted by
Discover Thainess
on
July 2, 2015 07:43
Discover Thainess - with you 100 percent on your comment, I am just back from Chang Mai and driving up there is not a nice experience too...
Something needs to be done to stop the carnage ..... But will it ???
Posted by
Robert
on
July 2, 2015 08:13
It's not the driving skills that are the issue - it is selfishness & stupidity.
Posted by
another_overseas_scot
on
July 2, 2015 08:58
They say that both cars was heading north from Chalong Circle. How can both cars have that kind of front damage?
Posted by
Retired Roadworker
on
July 2, 2015 09:01
Editor Comment:
Hitting a wall?
When will the police start to do their job?
Proper traffic monitoring, speed control, higher penalties,.......
The police is always different busy.
A brainwashing the drivers is not bad, and ...........
Posted by
steve
on
July 2, 2015 09:18
Sorry Discover Thainess,
Thailand has the 2nd most death per 100.000 people. Only one country in Africa is ahead of Thailand
This is really too bad for Thailand, but when you see the driving skills I am not surprised.
Posted by
Mj
on
July 2, 2015 09:36
Just last month I predicted already such tunnel happenings, and I did advice to avoid that underpass. Drive over the normal roads if you not in a hurry.
Posted by
Kurt
on
July 2, 2015 10:32
"Officers from Vichit Police Station are likely to further question the drivers today to understand how such a crash could happen. "
I thought the tunnel was monitored by CCTV 24/7?
Posted by
stevenl
on
July 2, 2015 10:40
@MJ
I stand corrected ! :-)
I thought there was a South Pacific island ahead of Thailand as well, which was a statistical anomoly as they only have about 100 residents and one of them got killed on the road.
Makes it even worse than I thought.
It all comes down to education - like in the 70s and 80s when the UK govt had a huge campaign to make drink driving socially unacceptable. The difference was remarkable and peer pressure is one of the best ways to improve things.
With all the social media available these days, and the country's addiction to "Lacorn" soap operas, it would seem fairly easy to start a social media and TV campaign to start to educate people on why road rules are there and why they should be obeyed.
But when you have police themselves flauting rules on a daily basis (riding the wrong way down Bangla Road every day for example), then people just follow that bad example.
Personally I would love to work with the Thai govt on this, social media is a subject I know well and my company could absolutely run a social media campaign sponsored by the govt which would get the message out. Takes time but absolutely achievable.
Anyone want to hire us?
Posted by
Discover Thainess
on
July 2, 2015 11:14
After injustice, the total disregard to your fellow citizens/residents is what aggravates me the most in Thailand.
There is simply no regard to how much inconvenience and disturbance ones actions cause to others here. Be it noise, pollution, cutting in line, staggering levels of corruption or blocking a lane because one is too lazy to walk 10m to the 7-11.
All clear signs, big and small, of the incomprehensible levels of pure selfishness.
It's all about me and I don't give a rats a** about others !
It's little wonder this attitude manifests itself in the traffic culture nationwide.
Posted by
Herbert
on
July 2, 2015 11:23
70+ people die in Thai road traffic accidents every day.
More shocking is that 7 children drowned yesterday, seven more will drown today. And everyday until things change.
Posted by
gee
on
July 2, 2015 11:44
It's not the driving skills that are the issue - it is selfishness & stupidity.
My Thai partner of 9 years does most of our driving as I (another Scot) abhor the road manners & driving conditions. It is the only time I hear her curse in Thai - it is always about 'selfishness & stupidity'.
Sadly, it is not just Phuket, it is a nationwide mindset.
Posted by
Logic
on
July 2, 2015 14:00
@ Discover Thainess
Majuro in the Marshall Islands has only one main road running the length of the atoll but so many cars that if they were all to take to the road at the same time, they'd be bumper to bumper the whole length of the road.
Yes, not related really but your comment simply reminded me of that peculiar fact.
Posted by
Herbert
on
July 2, 2015 15:02
Chaps stop moaning if you do not like Thailand leave! There are so many reasons why there are many accidents having lived with Thais I understand their view, example I was speaking to a Thai and he said why pay for an airbag in a car when you will probably never use it. I see his point and he is probably right most of the time, but the relatively low sum to potentially save my life or a passenger's life or terrible scaring of going through the windscreen is also important. It is their country let them run it. We are guests and if we change it to be like Europe then we would probably leave. You must of noticed safety is not a priority for many Thais, look at the electrics in homes, the wiring on the poles, the potholes even in the city which at night if you fall in you would probably break a leg, the ditch drop by the side of the road with no barrier, driving etc do I need to go on?
Posted by
I am pretty far from ok
on
July 2, 2015 15:54
To all who say if you don't like it leave/ Well eat ..... the rest you know. All we are trying to do is make sure the future is safe for everybody, even the big head aliens in Bangkok.
I am not going to pull any punches.
Every person in Thailand, regardless of colour, creed, ethnicity, desires and should be afforded a safe and happy existence on Phuket and elsewhere in Thailand. Stop the me me me attitude.
Posted by
Robin
on
July 2, 2015 17:11
@Herbert
Non-sense about Majuro atoll:a traffic in central part is quite relaxed, and closer you are to Laura beach, it becomes non-existent.
Everyone is chewing betel nut, thus focusing on their insight feeling, with apparent apathy exposed to outside world and related to it not so try grooming.
What is common to Phuket grassroute people, that so many people coughing like they have chronically bronchitis, tuberculosis or diphtheria - since there is no pharmacy on Majuro but only clinic and hospital, seems that visits there are reserved until being terminally ill.
Marshallese is the language that sounds met terrible to my ears: the manner of pronoun action is like responding by a private to a sergeant, putting a whole sentence in one exhale - and to manage it, on continious acceleration of tempo of second part of the sentence, and adding so characteristic ascending tone.
Posted by
Sue
on
July 2, 2015 18:23
@ I am pretty far from ok
If everyone always "just left", we'd all still be living in caves.
You can consider yourself a disposable guest and take it all up your rear if you want but do not even for a moment think you speak for everyone.
I'm not a guest of anyone here and even guests are afforded basic human rights. One of them being the right to an opinion. You may want to look it up under "Freedom of Speech".
You have the same right but it only extends to speaking for yourself.
It's you, not "we".
Posted by
Herbert
on
July 2, 2015 19:36
Concerns about safety and quality of driving haven't been sparked before? I had this spark the first time I drove a car in Phuket.
Posted by
Jakub P.
on
July 2, 2015 23:40
|
It was only a matter of time, I am surprised it took so long. Driving standards in Phuket and Thailand as a whole are shocking as the stats show (third most road deaths per head in the world).
Until driver education and law enforcement are increased, no change will happen. But then, we all know this already.
Posted by Discover Thainess on July 2, 2015 07:43