Govt steps up road safety blitz

A fleet of ambulances prepares for an emergency response campaign during the New Year holiday period last year. (File photo)
A ship of ambulances gets ready for an emergency response plan last year during the New Year’s vacation season. ( File photo )

The Royal Thai Police (RTP ) ramped up operations against drunk driving in particular as part of a new road safety campaign that the government launched on Sunday.

The state is aiming to further suppress road accidents in the festive period by launching the New Year 2025 street health plan, said Sasikarn Watthanachan, assistant representative of the Prime Minister’s Office. Last month road accidents in the same time claimed 284 existence, she said.

” Drink don’t travel, come home healthy” is the theme of this year’s safety plan for the New Year period, she said. She said it generally encourages people to steer clear of driving while under the influence of alcohol, which is a significant preventable cause of road accidents during the holiday season.

Up to 20, 917 folks, including follow criminals, were caught while driving under the influence during the New Year 2024 road safety fighting time, she said. Follow criminals face harsher consequences.

She said that next year authorities increased legal action against stores that illegally sell adult beverages to younger drivers. She said that some of these younger drivers were arrested while driving while their parents were held accountable for abusing their children, which is considered against the child safety rules.

First-time criminals may face a peak prison sentence of 1 month and/or a fine of up to 20, 000 ringgit, while repeat offenders face up to two years in jail, a fine of up to 100, 000 ringgit and a one-year expulsion of their driver’s permission, she said. Those who continue to break the law can lose their licence permanently, she said.

” Our wish is that everyone doesn’t drink and drive so everyone all come home safe”, she said.

Speeding ( 40.6 % ), swerving sharply in front of another running vehicle ( 23.3 % ), and driving while intoxicated ( 14.2 % ), she said, were the most frequent causes of road accidents during the New Year’s holiday period last year.

Up to 87.01 % of the accidents which occurred during the New Year 2024 festive travel period involved a motorcycle, while a vast majority of the dead victims ( 19.67 % ) were people between 30 and 39 years old, she said.

The good news is, she said, that the number of road accidents and casualties in the nation hasn’t decreased in the last three years.

There were 2, 707 road accidents during the New Year 2022 festive period, 2, 440 during the New Year 2023 period and 2, 288 during the New Year 2024 period, while the number of those injured recorded in the past three New Year periods were 2, 672, 2, 437 and 2, 307, respectively, she said.

The death toll recorded during New Year 2022 and 2023 was 333 and 317, respectively, she said.

According to national police chief Pol Gen Kittharath Punpetch, the RTP has already increased public and road safety measures ahead of Christmas and the New Year. These measures are divided into two related areas, including traffic safety and crime suppression.

In terms of crime prevention and suppression, police organisations have since Dec 17 been instructed to step up crackdowns on illegal activities, including gambling, narcotics-related crimes, crimes involving illegal firearms and cybercrime, he said.

Some illegal behaviors, such as shooting a gun into the air and flying a lantern, may seem trivial to some people and even be considered holiday, he claimed.

Road racing and teenage brawls are among the common illegal activities that the police should be on the lookout for during any extended holidays, he said. They are likely to be followed by an attack at a hospital where the injured parties are treated, he said.

From Friday through January 9, the RTP has established a central operation center to coordinate the work of police organizations across the country and to minimize road accidents, he said.

According to him, police are aiming to reduce the number of major offenses that contribute to road accidents during the holiday season, particularly driving while under the influence of alcohol.

He claimed that security checkpoints have been set up to randomly screen drivers for their blood alcohol levels and prevent people from driving while intoxicated.

Kittharath: Eyes crime suppression

Kittharath: Eyes crime suppression

Sasikarn: Notes decline in accidents

Sasikarn: Notes decline in accidents