Reining in traffic-stopping super bikers

I FIND it rather amusing that a group of Malaysian super bikers have embarrassed themselves in Thailand.

The fact that Thai TV and media outlets repeatedly aired the clip shows that unlike Malaysian road users, our dear neighbours take the offence rather seriously.

It baffles me why we Malaysian road users and, more importantly, the authorities allow bikers to play king of the road every time there is a convoy.

Who gave them the right to hold up other law-abiding road users is a question I ask myself every time I get stopped by a man on a bike with the words “marshal” printed on the back of his luminous vest.

I am sure that as a civil-minded licensed biker, one of the primary lessons taught on biking is to respect and not cause inconvenience to other road users.

What is so difficult about waiting in line for the traffic light to turn green?

This offence of bikers stopping traffic is not so different from the infamous speeding vehicles on our many highways, flashing their self-installed strobe lights as though they are in more of a hurry than the rest of us law-abiding road users.

While I am relieved the perpetrators in the said episode in Thailand owned up and apologised to the Narathiwat government of Thailand, I can’t help but wonder if we should start distributing a handbook of do’s and don’ts to our fellow countrymen before they leave the country to prevent any future embarrassing acts.

We definitely do not want any of our neighbours to label us as ill cultured and lawless.

Let us make our roads a safer place and share them responsibly.