Many revellers plan to drive home: survey
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Nearly a third of people planning to go drinking at New Year parties also plan to drive themselves home, a survey has revealed.
The survey conducted on 3,000 people by the Public Health Ministry revealed that 36.6 per cent of potential partygoers had no qualms about being behind the wheel even after consuming alcohol.
“This is even though 48.7 per cent are aware that alcohol consumption is the cause of accidents,” Disease Control Department’s director-general Sopon Mekthon said yesterday.
Highway Police, meanwhile, have produced a video marking bypasses and risky spots on the route from Bangkok to the North and Northeast, as they expect a huge volume of traffic and hope to prevent accidents.
Roads to be clogged
Highway Police predicted there would be heavy traffic yesterday evening and on the evening of December 30.
Highway Police chief Maj-General Somchai Kaosamran said the most problematic spot would be Bang Pa-in Interchange, where four roads to the North and Northeast meet and there are seven petrol stations that many people use as a meeting point.
He said people should watch the video clips his department has posted on the Highway Police website and YouTube for this occasion:
l www.highwaypolice.org/holiday_map.php;
l https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=kQqQXW0_UWw ;
l https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=Kd1VAJtjvlE ; and
l https://www.youtube.com/
watch?v=wl29g85M_mE.
Leaflets on road safety are available at Highway Police service points and people can also make inquiries via LINE ID “Highway1193”, he said.
Somchai said a recent survey found some 106 accident-prone spots around the country, including 14 most risky ones that went uphill or downhill. He said he would instruct police to be stationed at risky areas and get dangerous U-turn points closed during the New Year break.
But he pointed out that accidents also take place on straight roads due to speeding and motorists disregarding traffic laws.
He said that apart from providing maps of bypasses and risky spots, other measures during this holiday season would include strict enforcement of traffic laws, especially against drink driving; motorists not wearing helmets/seatbelts; speeding; and those driving against the traffic.
He said everybody should check their vehicle’s condition before leaving home and be aware that tiredness can also cause accidents. People who are tired should stop at 196 rest stops along the way to take a nap or get a coffee before continuing their journey.
The New Year holiday period, known as the “Seven Dangerous Days”, last year (from December 27, 2013 to January 2, 2014), saw 151 road accidents, up from 142 accidents in the same period a year earlier.
Most accidents were caused by speeding, while the Highway numbers 1 to 3, which are main routes to the North and Northeast, saw the most accidents (137), followed by rural roads at 11.
