Motorists at intersections get more discretion at night

Having traffic police control traffic flow manually is one of acting city police chief Sanit Mahathavorn’s ideas about traffic management aimed at helping motorists and boosting safety.

Another is to abandon automatic traffic light changes at night in favour of a blinking red light, allowing drivers to decide themselves whether to stop or go.

All are just ideas, Pol Lt Gen Sanit said. The acting city police chief added that “There’s no official order at this moment.”

He has asked officers to study areas where the new traffic management model can be applied, especially the blinking light system.

Most likely to come to effect first is the proposal for manual traffic light control.

According to Traffic Police Division’s deputy chief Ekkarak Limsangkat, traffic police stationed at crowded intersections already “push light buttons” themselves during rush hour.

The officers need to observe the number of cars to decide how long they should travel or wait, he said. They do not rely purely on the automatic system.

Their help is needed because the timed traffic light switch is not responsive to traffic flow when almost all the road space is filled with cars, Pol Lt Gen Sanit said. “But normally we will use [the manual method] only during rush hour or heavy traffic congestion,” he said, rejecting the prospect of officers pushing traffic buttons all day and night.

Pol Col Ekkarak said the officers will survey in what areas they can put Pol Lt Gen Sanit’s two ideas to work.

The acting police chief said he suggested the blinking red light because of his concern over drivers violating the traffic law during odd hours as well as their safety.

The automatic light switch may cause unnecessary waiting time when few cars are on the road. This may prompt some motorists to jump the light, Pol Lt Sanit said.

But under the blinking light regulation, drivers need only make sure there are no cars running across an intersection before moving on, he said.

Waiting at an intersection for too long at night may also cause safety concerns, the acting police chief added. Motorcycle riders may easily fall victim to gangs hiding in the area.

But this idea can apply only in areas where the number of cars is low, Pol Lt Gen Sanit added.

Inner areas in Bangkok are still full of cars even at night, so the idea should be more suitable to suburban areas like Min Buri, Sai Mai and Nong Chok, Pol Col Ekkarak said.