Fast and furious

Re: “Points system can deter bad drivers”, (BP, Jan 4).

All of us who live here are well aware of the appalling standard of driving in the country, which dreadful accident statistics bear out. We read recently of the new “points deduction” system, increased fines for offences and so on, but the main problem, as I see it, is the attitude and ability of drivers coupled with an almost complete lack of active deterrence by the police.

In my 25 years here, I have driven hundreds of thousands of kilometres in most parts of the country, but over New Year, I had to be on the roads a great deal, something I would normally avoid.

After 60 years of driving, I no longer feel the need to prove my prowess and travel usually at 90-110kph, so I was constantly overtaken by vehicles, including sometimes lorries, at speeds that made it look as though I was driving in reverse!

Drunk driving apart, speed is the major cause of accidents here. I have to wonder why the previous plethora of cameras, both hand-held and fixed, has clearly declined — although I notice more fixed ones now.

Police vehicles are seldom seen on the roads, and even when they are, the drivers seem oblivious to vehicles flashing past them, even as they themselves exceed the limit.

So how to educate a driver with a bullock-cart mentality to cope with a vehicle capable of speeds up to 200kph? It’s not going to happen overnight, but an effective driving test and a lack of police indifference may improve the situation. But This is Thailand (TIT)!

JT KORAT