Make roads safe to ride

Make roads safe to ride

A cycling mini-marathon involving several hundred cyclists is supposed to be a fun-filled affair. But a cycling event last Sunday, organised by Kasetsart University's Kamphaeng Saen campus, ended in tragedy when a pickup truck rammed into the cyclists, causing one death and several injuries.

Eye-witnesses said the pickup truck driver was racing with another driver on Saeng Chuto Road in Kanchanaburi and lost control of the vehicle when he tried to avoid an oncoming car, swerving into the cyclists in the left lane.

The tragic death of a cyclist was among several deadly bike accidents over the past few months. Many have occurred the same way. One involved a speeding vehicle which crashed into a group of cyclists in Royal Park Rachapruek in Chiang Mai.

Another, which took place last February, involved a British couple, who were half way through their around-the-world cycling journey. The couple were cycling on the hard shoulder in Phanom Sarakham, Chachoengsao when they were hit by a motorist who tried to use his cell phone while speeding.

These three accidents — there must be many more cases that have gone unreported — resulted from the same cause: recklessness on the part of car drivers. All were either racing or driving beyond legal speed limits.

The above-mentioned accidents significantly underscore Thailand's poor road safety record. Several hundred people fall victim to road accidents during the festive seasons, both the New Year and Songkran periods.

According to the Global Status Report on Road Safety 2013 by the World Health Organisation, Thailand ranked as the world's third worst country for road fatalities, with 38.1 deaths for every 100,000 people.

The same report also found that more than half of all road traffic deaths, like the rest of the world, involved pedestrians, cyclists, and motorcyclists.

Recklessness, which is closely linked with lenient traffic law enforcement, is the major cause of road-related accidents. The campaign for road safety, which has a huge budget each year, simply fails to improve the traffic behaviour of road users; therefore, it's next to impossible to cut the road accident rate.

The three cycling accidents are also a wake-up call for safety — or lack of safety — for cyclists whose numbers are steadily rising across the nation.

The country is in dire need of cycling infrastructure, for instance, bike lanes that ensure safety for those opting for this mode of environmentally friendly transport, and so-called backstreet routes that enable cyclists to avoid main roads or highways.

There seems to be some improvements on the Bangkok cycling scene regarding infrastructure, although a lot more needs to be done. But this infrastructure is almost non-existent in the provinces, especially intercity biking tracks that can make cycling an everyday activity. These can also accommodate bigger cycling events.

Riding on hard shoulders, which is allowed by law, is apparently not safe enough.

To make change happen, there must be an agency responsible for enforcing policy, with the necessary authority to turn policies into reality. In Bangkok, this responsibility falls on the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration.

In the provinces, the governors should co-ordinate with local administrative bodies to ensure better road safety.

Still, we cannot expect to cut road casualties without tougher traffic law enforcement and higher road safety awareness on the part of drivers. This requires concerted effort by authorities from various agencies including the police, city planners, public works officials and civic groups.

Equally important, if not more, is drivers' respect for other modes of transport which share the roads with them.

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