It's time that we get serious about pedestrian crossings

Regardless of what is written in law, pedestrians in practice do not really have the right of way at these crossings.

It is not uncommon to see pedestrians stranded halfway through the crossings when vehicles in the next few lanes refuse to stop.

Official statistics are not available. But judging from news reports, the number of people killed or fatally injured in marked pedestrian crossings here must be very high. 

Kanjapas Siriprathum, a 29-year-old creative artist for a TV programme, is just one recent victim. 

A small truck hit and seriously injured Kanjapas  last Thursday while she was crossing Bangkok’s Asoke Road in front of her office. 

Her case has attracted much public sympathy partly because the lights for the pedestrian crossing allegedly said “Go” at the time of the accident.

While most families in Thailand are preparing to celebrate the New Year, Kanjapas’ family are left grieving. 

She left behind a new husband, whom she tied the knot with just weeks ago. 

Emerging information suggests motor vehicles have hit a number of victims at this same spot before. 

Such reports underline the fact that if Thailand does nothing to reverse this bad trend, many more victims will die on these killing fields. 

According to Thai law, drivers are liable to a maximum fine of Bt1,000 if they fail to stop their vehicles for pedestrians at marked crossings. In the events of a road accident taking place, drivers involved must compensate victims or their families. In the case of death, reckless drivers are liable to up to 10 years in jail and a fine of up to Bt20,000. 

In the event of serious injuries, reckless drivers are liable to up to three years in jail and/or a maximum fine of Bt6,000.

The long arm of the law, however, may be failing to punish reckless drivers seriously enough. 

A few famous entertainers have been convicted of reckless driving that caused several deaths in Thailand. But after paying compensation, their jail terms were suspended. 

Many Thai drivers are emboldened by such a lenient approach. Many have been overheard saying that if their vehicles hit a victim, they would prefer to see the casualty dead rather than injured, because a dead person wouldn’t be able to complain or seek justice in the courts. 

In late 2010, an under-age driver took her parents’ car out on to a tollway. She ended up crashing the vehicle into a public-transport van, killing nine of its passengers. The case reached court, but the young driver got away with a suspended jail term.

In civilised countries like the United States, drivers are serious about driving carefully because they know legal enforcement is very strict. Drunk driving, for example, is an extremely serious legal offence there. So if drunk drivers get caught causing road accidents, they will certainly get into serious legal trouble. 

If Thailand takes the same tough stance against reckless drivers, our driving culture will start to change for the better and the greater safety of all road users. 

Drivers should be made acutely aware they must take responsibility for accidents that happen and for the loss of lives they cause. 

In addition to the strict legal enforcement, campaigns should be launched to inculcate a respect for traffic discipline and care for other road users.

The pedestrian crossing is a spot where drivers must stop their vehicles and allow people to cross roads. When the pedestrian-crossing light turns green, drivers must stop.

At the same time, authorities should carefully choose spots to place marked crossings and pedestrian-crossing lights. These signs, for example, should never be on a bend because such a location is clearly dangerous for pedestrians. 

Let’s make real efforts to stop road accidents today – particularly at pedestrian crossings.