Following the success of Bike For Mom, Life surveyed those in the know to ask whether the capital can develop a real and sustainable bicycle-friendly culture
Pol Maj Sanphet Jirasakul
- Traffic policeman
To some traffic policemen, while the Bike for Mom event affirmed the fact that cycling is good for health and the environment and can unite a nation to a common good cause, the possibility of making Bangkok a cycling city remains far-fetched.
According to Phra Khanong Police Station’s senior traffic inspector Pol Maj Sanphet Jirasakul, Bangkok’s major roads are just not designed for cyclists and there are no cycling laws that can be enforced to guarantee the safety of riders.
Unlike other modes of transport, where drivers have to abide by traffic laws, cyclists have few restrictions to follow, while traffic police have no power to force them to follow road regulations.
From three decades of experience, the traffic policeman had this to say about accidents involving cyclists.
“From video footage of such accidents I can clearly deduce that cyclists are often not well versed in how to determine when to change lanes,” he said. “They often misjudge the speed of the vehicle that is in the lane next to them. Bicycles are much slower in speed, so fatal accidents occur. The lose of a life in this manner is very unfortunate. The fact that roads in Bangkok were not designed with cyclists in mind only adds fuel to the fire.
“I would say 80% of the time the cyclist is killed. The remaining 20% are either disabled or injured to the point that they are not able to fully recover. The lucky few are able to go home with minor injuries.
“The point I am trying to make is that cycling in Bangkok is dangerous. Cycling should be used for leisure activities and not as a mode of transport to take you from your home to the office, especially if it located on a major road.
“Even with the bicycle lanes, which are often not used for this purpose, I would discourage people from cycling. I would say only in a controlled environment, where larger vehicles are not allowed, is it safe to bring your bicycles.”
As for how to make Bangkok a more cycling friendly city, Sanphet said routes with bicycle lanes should be increased to cover other areas in Bangkok, while stricter laws have to be implemented so that drivers of larger vehicles respect the right for only cyclists to use them.
“If we are to one day see Bangkok become a cycling city, I believe we need motorists to be disciplined drivers. Out of 10, I would give Thai motorists five. We still have a long way to go,” he said.
— Yvonne Bohwongprasert
Zcongklod Bangyikhan
- Editor of Human Ride
The biggest question for Zcongklod Bangyikhan, editor of A Day and Human Ride magazines, is not whether there should or shouldn’t be proper bike lanes. It is, rather, about looking at the transportation system as a whole, in which not just bikers, but also those who walk, drive or use wheelchairs should be given equal consideration.
Zcongklod Bangyikhan.
The recent Bike for Mom event has brought the prospect of Bangkok as a “bike city” once again back on the table, but Zcongklod thought it too soon to see its wider impact.
“First of all, it was a sign that people use bicycles more,” said Zcongklod, who’s a fervent cycling advocate. “Before, it was a type of vehicle which people didn’t understand but now it has become an activity on a national level, which brings it closer to our everyday life.”
Zcongklod said cycling in Bangkok is more about exercise and activity for pleasure than commuting.
“A Day did a survey last year and found out that only a very small percentage of cyclists ride for commuting,” said Zcongklod. “Which brings on the next question: shouldn’t a plan for big cycling parks to serve those who want to exercise be on the government’s agenda?”
Zcongklod said many people are missing the point if they think building bike lanes will be the end of the problem.
“What if in three years, when there are bike lanes everywhere and people start to like walking more, are we gonna have to start building pedestrian lanes too?” said Zcongklod. “We should rethink the transportation system as a whole, for those who walk, use bicycles or drive. We should begin by establishing an understanding that cars are not god, but just one alternative among other alternatives.”
— Kaona Pongpipat
Supan Thongmak
- Squid seller
Supan Thongmak got on a two-wheeler and biking for him was just everyday life and not a lifestyle choice — it is a career and not a trend.
The 43-year-old found himself a job in the capital 14 years ago as a hawker selling dried squid after he turned his back on farming in the South. He started off by selling street delicacies on foot but soon took up biking because it allowed him to cover more places and get more customers.
Repeatedly touring around crowded corners of Chinatown from 5pm to 3am, he logs a distance of no less than 20km a day. Due to that, he said, he’s healthy. Having been strapped to the saddle for over a decade during a time when the only bikers were people like him, something like the recent Bike for Mom event definitely caught him by surprise.
“I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the number of participants on the day the event was held,” said Supan. “I was just guessing the number of participants with my friends and I thought it was 20,000 tops. Then I saw the number on the news and I was like ‘whoa’.”
Of course, Supan was excited to witness a bike-related event on such a scale for the first time in his life. And with the idea of bike lanes being pushed forward, he is surely someone who would be in favour. But while he still has no clue how practical bike lanes would be for hawkers like him, he said once the lanes near the area he passes daily are finished, he would be the first to use them.
However, as someone who has been in road accidents over the course of his work, Supan also thinks that the country, in terms of road safety for bikers, has deep-rooted problems. He points out that not only do roads need to be entirely reconditioned, better education for new bikers as well as laws protecting them are needed.
“If the government is serious about this at all, it needs to pay attention to these things,” said Supan. “This is only the beginning.”
— Duangphat Sitthipat
Rath Rungaram.
Rath Rungaram
- Commuter
Rath Rungaram.
For someone who has been cycling to work since 2007, like graphic designer Rath Rungaram, biking is a true passion that goes beyond events like Bike for Mom.
“I think if you really want to cycle, it should be part of your daily lifestyle,” said the 35-year-old who bikes from his home at Liab Duan to the Elle Decoration magazine office at Klong Toey. Despite his enthusiasm for cycling in general, he remains nonchalant towards the big event that took place two Sundays ago.
“I wasn’t interested in it at all because I don’t like to bike in big crowds with lots of people. I didn’t want to have to queue in long lines to get the T-shirts and all the registering seemed like a big hassle,” he said. After eight years of biking to work on a daily basis, Rath has cycled around the city long enough to know that little has changed over the years.
“The roads back then were not OK and they still aren’t,” he said. “Bike for Mom is just a one-day thing — just a buzz. It’s not going to help with anything, because the roads aren’t going to get better, traffic isn’t going to get better, people on the road aren’t going to care about us more and they won’t stop parking in the bike lanes either.”
According to Rath, the bike lanes are actually more dangerous than biking on the roads.
“There are lots of holes and uneven bumps on the bike lanes. Even cycling on the roads is sometimes better. It would be nice if the government could help in making better roads without pipes, holes and puddles,” he said. Bad roads are still one of the main problems for bikers, along with the heat. Rath only needs to change a top after he gets to work, but it is impossible for him to not take a shower when he gets to the office. It may be no trouble for him to do so — plus he saves a couple of thousand baht on transportation every month — yet a cycling culture is not something he expects to see in Thailand.
“I don’t think that day will ever come, because Thai people don’t really place importance on bikes,” he said. “Still, it would be a great thing if people could see the benefit, because you’d be free from traffic, you can save some money, you don’t need to get any fitness club memberships and it’s fun too. I think if your heart really wants to bike, then it won’t see anything as a big deal. You just need to be alert while you are cycling and learn to be careful.”
— Parisa Pichitmarn