After yet another failed government effort to bring down holiday road fatalities, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha talked tough. He said he intends to bring his Section 44 powers to bear, even though harsh road traffic enforcement has so far flunked the test.
He also has singled out passenger vans as the prime target of a campaign he hopes will make the roads safer for Songkran. It is a curious emphasis. While a van was involved in the single most deadly New Year accident, multi-seat passenger vehicles were almost invisible among the causes and damage of the worst holiday road carnage on record.
Just four months ago, the prime minister was waxing rather enthusiastically about passenger vans. In his Friday night TV talk of Sept 2, 2016, he told viewers the government had brought Bangkok's illegal vans to heel. Where they previously waited for passengers at key traffic points, he had forced them into the capital's bus stations. It was only after the horrific van-pickup crash last week in Chon Buri province that the prime minister mentioned vans again -- with some vehemence.
He promised the harshest action, including use of his extra-legal powers under Section 44 of the interim constitution. He warned that no one should voice opposition, although he welcomed allies.
"If you want to ensure safety, you must work with me," he warned. Police and the military have received his general orders to target vans across the country, but particularly those travelling to the capital from up-country -- as was the van in the Jan 2 crash and fire in Chon Buri.
There is no question that passenger vans need better regulation. Equally, it is unlikely that Gen Prayut can meet his primary goal of making roads safe for the five-day Songkran holiday in April if he concentrates on regulating vans. Among the 3,919 accidents recorded during the recent "seven dangerous days", vans were mostly not involved.
The single Chon Buri van-pickup collision, probably caused by a sleepy driver, killed 25 people, but 453 died in other accidents. Of the 161,368 people listed on government statistics as detained on suspicion of drink-driving, there were no van drivers.
Equipping vans with GPS trackers is a current project. They could inhibit drivers from speeding but will not otherwise prevent accidents and deaths. Importantly, they cannot prevent drivers from dozing off, as happened last week. There are already smartphone apps that do that, raising a loud alarm at the first sign of sleepiness. Such apps would also involve passengers being alerted and rousing a driver on the edge of causing a disaster. So far, the government that touts Thailand 4.0 has not mentioned personal technology as a way to save lives on the roads.
Illegal vans have been operating in Thailand for 25 years and must be better regulated. The regime must not lose sight of the fact that vans exist because of consumer preference.
A Bangkok Post article from 1997 reported the Transport Co dropped plans to introduce micro-buses -- another favourite of the prime minister -- because passengers "preferred to drive or use the illegal van service".
The truth is, vans are a relatively minor part of the slaughter on Thai roads. While working on better van regulations, the government must formulate a holistic plan to make roads safer. It must include all types of vehicles, noting that motorcycles are involved in around 75% of drink-driving cases and deaths on the road.
Without an inclusive plan to encourage better driving along with better enforcement, there will be another record highway death toll in mid-April.