Safety advocates say the government could cut the high number of road accidents in Thailand if policy-makers set aside more money to enforce traffic laws and encourage better driving habits.
Thanaphong Jinwong, the manager of Road Safety Group Thailand, revealed that about 14,000 people a year — 38 people a day — are killed in traffic accidents. The leading cause, he said, is risky behaviour: driving over the speed limit, cutting off other vehicles, running traffic lights, drink-driving and not wearing safety belts.
Mr Thanaphong said police are hampered in their efforts to curb this behaviour by inadequate funding.
In the budget of the Royal Thai Police, only 4%-5% is allocated for road accident prevention and traffic management.
This is despite the fact that the number of deaths from traffic crashes is four times higher than those related to crime and drugs, he said.
With such a small budget, police units cannot afford to supply the necessary equipment for road safety.
Mr Thanaphong is calling on reforms aimed at boosting the focus on prevention. He said equipment — such as speed cameras, alcohol measurement devices and traffic light sensors — are particularly needed to punish those who violate the law.
Mr Thanaphong said 50% of traffic violation fines are distributed to local units and 45% are paid to officers, when it could be spent on developing or supplying equipment.
He said the Land Traffic Act, in effect since 1979, should be amended to meet new road safety challenges.
Fines and the gravity of certain charges must be rejigged.
Road fatalities over the holidays this year fell 7% compared with the previous year, with 341 people killed during the "seven dangerous days" of the festive season.
At the same time, however, the severity of the accidents increased, Mr Thanaphong said.
The decrease in number this year was caused by several factors. One of them is that between Dec 31 and Jan 1, there were 20% fewer accidents than the year before, with only 60 fatalities.
Mr Thanaphong said accident data during the New Year holiday must be further studied to prevent other types of accidents, such as pedestrian collisions, which doubled this year compared to last.
He also called on police to strictly enforce drink-driving laws.
The major causes of accidents are speeding (40.7%) and cutting off other vehicles (24.5%). But on Jan 1 alone, 57.7% of fatalities were caused by drink-driving.
Meanwhile, in Sing Buri, governor Chalothorn Phakhoat revealed that 16 road accidents occurred in the province during the previous long holidays. There were 18 injuries but no fatalities.