Could the deaths of 20 school children help make Thailand's roads safer?

Thailand is simply a state successful shock: 3 days ago, 20 children and 3 teachers were killed erstwhile their autobus was engulfed successful flames.

It was 1 of the South East Asian country’s worst roadworthy accidents, and investigators person uncovered a bid of information failures which immoderate person suggested efficaciously turned the conveyance into a “bomb connected wheels”.

It has near the state - inactive mourning the nonaccomplishment of the 23 connected committee the autobus - wondering however this was ever allowed to happen, and if it could hap again?

Video taken of the bus, aft the operator had collided with a factual obstruction and travel to a stop, showed jets of occurrence shooting up from underneath the conveyance and turning it into an inferno wrong minutes, giving the passengers successful the rear nary accidental of escape.

Investigators recovered the bus, which was converted to tally connected compressed earthy state (CNG), had six state cylinders legally installed successful the rear.

But they besides recovered 5 much illegally fitted nether the beforehand of the bus.

The probe recovered that a tube coming from 1 of those successful the beforehand broke successful the impact, leaking state which ignited the fire. The trapped passengers look to person been incapable to unfastened the rear exigency exit too, though it is not wide yet why.

The authorities responded by ordering each of the much than 13,000 nationalist and backstage buses powered by CNG to travel successful for inspection, and suspended each long-distance schoolhouse autobus trips.

But the conversion to CNG was conscionable 1 of galore alterations made since the autobus was archetypal registered successful 1970.

It was a benignant of "franken-bus", with caller bodywork added respective times, and lone parts of the chassis remaining from the original.

It had erstwhile been a double-decker, but - erstwhile caller regulations imposed tallness limitations connected these due to the fact that of their propensity to overturn successful an mishap - it was converted into a single-decker.

The passengers were inactive sitting connected the precocious deck, with the little platform utilized to accommodate each the state cylinders. Social media users person likened the autobus to a weaponry connected wheels.

This is contempt Thailand's gradual instauration implicit the past 15 years of regulations for autobus information laid retired by the UNECE, the UN Economic Commission for Europe, a assemblage liable for establishing planetary standards successful galore areas. But exertion of these rules person been dilatory and piecemeal.

“The occupation is astir of the manufacturers successful Thailand cannot scope that standard,” says Sumet Ongkittikul, a transport specializer astatine the Thailand Development Research Institute. “So the implementation has been delayed, to let them to drawback up.

“Also, the regulations lone use to caller buses. But astir of the buses operating successful Thailand are old."

What’s more, regulations lone use to caller vehicles, and astir of Thailand’s buses are aged - astatine slightest partially. Modifying aged autobus chassis with caller bodywork is simply a section industry, wherever information standards are for the astir portion acold down those successful galore different countries.

It is thought that astatine slightest 80% of the buses connecting Thailand’s cities are successful this older, adapted category.

“A caller bus, from a bully manufacturer, is precise expensive,” Sumet Ongkittikul explains. “So they usage an aged chassis, and a section shaper to physique caller bodywork, and that is counted lone arsenic an aged bus, wherever the caller regulations bash not apply.”

For example, UNECE regularisation UN R118, which requires autobus interiors to beryllium made with non-flammable materials, was officially introduced successful Thailand successful 2022, but does not use to buses made earlier then, oregon buses adapted utilizing older chassis.

Less flammable materials mightiness person helped mitigate the autobus occurrence connected Tuesday.

And adjacent the precise constricted regulations which did use to the ill-fated autobus look to person been broken.

According to the police, the autobus was inspected successful May this year, but they judge the amerciable summation of state cylinders was made aft that.

Two days aft the accident, the constabulary accidental they caught the autobus owner trying to region improperly-installed state cannisters from the 5 different buses.

The institution has had its licence to tally buses suspended, and the proprietor has been charged with causing decease done negligence, with different transgression charges being considered.

But volition this mishap yet bring astir a alteration successful Thailand’s dire roadworthy information record?

The state is presently connected its 5th National Road Safety Master Plan, but with small advancement to amusement for it.

For years, it has sat successful the apical 10 countries with the highest per capita roadworthy fatalities. At times, it has been fig two.

Data from the TDRI recovered that implicit the 10 years to 2023, an mean of 17,914 radical died from roadworthy accidents per year.

In the UK, which has a akin population, fatalities are 10 times lower.

Anyone who travels regularly connected Thai roads volition beryllium acquainted with the unsafe behaviour habitually exhibited by galore drivers.

Exceeding the velocity bounds is commonplace and seldom punished. Cars weave successful and retired of traffic, leaving small borderline for error. Commercial vehicles are often overloaded, severely designed and poorly lit. Motorbike riders routinely neglect to deterioration helmets, acold much than successful neighbouring countries.

Some blasted corruption successful the constabulary force. Others blasted the Buddhist content successful karma, putting misfortunes similar car accidents down to atrocious luck alternatively than atrocious habits.

Although determination are posters graphically informing of the dangers of drinking and driving, determination has besides not been a sustained roadworthy information run mounted by immoderate Thai government. Some researchers judge this is due to the fact that astir fatalities, connected motorbikes and connected nationalist buses, impact little income groups, and not the policymakers who usually drive, oregon are driven, successful high-end cars with precocious information levels.

For each of the appalling statistics, roadworthy information is not seen arsenic an urgent issue, and gets small attraction from the public.

There person been plentifulness of arsenic horrific accidents earlier involving long-distance buses, yet they are small safer contiguous than they were 10 years ago.

Transport Minister Suriya Jungrungreangkit has announced a peculiar committee to look into each aspects of roadworthy information pursuing Tuesday's fatal accident, but it has been greeted with small fanfare oregon enthusiasm.

If this inaugural truly does bring astir meaningful improvements, and bring down the yearly decease toll, it volition interruption the signifier of ineffectual measures which person characterised astir each of Thailand’s roadworthy information efforts to date.