Traffic lane mix-up leaves Chinese tourist injured in Phuket
A woman just arrived from China was injured early on Thursday when a car rented and driven by her friend crashed head-on with an SUV on a Phuket road after entering the wrong lane.
Police said the 5.59am accident occurred on Choeng Thale-Thalang Road in Thalang district’s Tambon Thepkasatree.
The injured tourist was identified as Jang Su Ting, 32.
The car in which she was travelling with three friends – two men and another woman – crashed head-on at a curve in the road with an SUV driven by Phuket resident Thinida Poksakul.
The four Chinese had just arrived by air and rented the car to drive to their hotel.
The driver evidently moved into the oncoming lane at the curve, momentarily forgetting that the direction of traffic flow is different in Thailand.
Thinida, heading to work at the airport, did not see the oncoming car in time.
Police said she and the other Chinese tourists were wearing seatbelts and escaped injury.