Udon Traffic

[mak]

I guess I'll take the Ring Road on the afternoon school run and avoid going through town.

[mech_401]

I've a feeling this one is country wide so it will be a toughie to prevent this one happening, I just hope it stays peaceful because I seem to remember buildings got burnt last time?

some of the municipal buildings off park/ tungsri
muang field. no-one seemed able or willing to
control protestors. just like when overran airport

[vincemunday]

I guess I'll take the Ring Road on the afternoon school run and avoid going through town.

All turned out to be bit of a damp squib, we had people coming through town all afternoon and not one complained about the traffic.

[mak]

Incoming traffic backed up to Big C this morning at 0800.

[Khun Paul]

Nothing unusual in that, the poor traffic management and parents unable to car pool means that everyone is taking their child to school . The traffic queues mean that traffic is slowed down going into town plus the traffic lights at Nong Bua and UD are not exactly helpful.

[Drunk Monkey]

Nothing unusual in that, the poor traffic management and parents unable to car pool means that everyone is taking their child to school . The traffic queues mean that traffic is slowed down going into town plus the traffic lights at Nong Bua and UD are not exactly helpful.

So the bad traffic nowadays is due to the lack of s e x education more so contraception or the lack of it .. a possible cull of kids in large families a possible remedy KP ??

8am n 5pm and horrendous traffic is not only found in Udon .. i see it in every province i visit , KK and Ubon are worse IMO ..its rush hour and to miss it in Bkk you need to be coming off motorway 9 or Chalong Rat expressway into the center no later than 6am .. im told the evening is even worse but never experienced it as long gone by then.

The next few days of heavy rain across the country will also add to the driving woes .. DM having a week off stay home n finish my jigsaw puzzle.

DM

[Niggly]

FWIW I think today’s traffic problems may have a simpler answer.
On our numerous trips round the metropolis today we encountered a Pizza Company touring bus thing with loud music & people walking/dancing in front of it giving out flyers. We got caught behind it 4 times in the massive queue of traffic it had trailing.
No children were seen being produced during this observation

[tamada]

Nothing unusual in that, the poor traffic management and parents unable to car pool means that everyone is taking their child to school . The traffic queues mean that traffic is slowed down going into town plus the traffic lights at Nong Bua and UD are not exactly helpful.

Due to power outages, several sets of traffic lights were out of action during this morning's 8 o'clock rush hour. This includes the lights at BOTH ends of Soi Nongbua (ring road and Phosi ends) as well as UD @ the station and Prajak Silapakom and the next one up at Sai Uthit (opposite Central). Luckily, the ones at Phosi and Thong Yai (McDonalds) were functioning OK. I guess it shows that some of UPS and battery backups need attention? Time to write to your local MP.

From my observations, lack of car pooling isn't the issue as most kids go to school on the back (or front) of a bike. Only the ones that go to Don Bosco and St Mary's seem to have individual limo service.

[Khun Paul]

Noted your comments reference Traffic Lights, but please explain the vast numbers of cars at St Marys, which manage to completely screw up the traffic and times when picking up and dropping off.
After years like yourself here, RTP have little if any Traffic Management abilities when Traffic lights are out of order ,( if they in fact turn up ).
Same as so often in other countries the Police screw up traffic more than usual . But here blowing whistles and waving at you does not actually instill confidence that they know what they are doing , when most people cannot hear the whistles in any event.

[Drunk Monkey]

Noted your comments reference Traffic Lights, but please explain the vast numbers of cars at St Marys, which manage to completely screw up the traffic and times when picking up and dropping off.
After years like yourself here, RTP have little if any Traffic Management abilities when Traffic lights are out of order ,( if they in fact turn up ).
Same as so often in other countries the Police screw up traffic more than usual . But here blowing whistles and waving at you does not actually instill confidence that they know what they are doing , when most people cannot hear the whistles in any event.

FWIW .. in my experience as covid lockdown airport junction monitor i can confirm it isnt just the St Marys part of town that chokes up at 7-30 thru till 9 am ..its all over the entire city center and starts at the ring road turning into the main arteries leading in .

KP .. PLAN B ... So lets scrap the kiddy cull and go for a cull of the RTP .. lets do all the dark sKinned coppers first , followed by the fat ones then whose uniforms are faded AND not pressed correctly and finally the ones that love karaoke but cant sing very good...

DM

[Khun Paul]

Silly idea DM, let us try instead to properly maintain the Traffic Lights, install cameras on each traffic light, so it can record the appalling driving . Regulate the traffic lights to ease flows at peak times . Educate nominated officers how this can be achieved, and then wait for it ...Enforce all laws so that transgressors will know not to do it again.
Sadly here it will be the last point that will fail and it will never change .

[kopkei]

solution , remove all in city schools outbound ?, also no problems with the stupid alcohol sale restriction ...
police enforce to give all immediate tickets in case of double/triple parking,
instead of posting a police to guide this ..???

[Drunk Monkey]

You make a valid point kopkei ..in many cases and not only at schools but markets , 7/11s etc double and triple parking should be stamped on with 1000 bt instant fine .. purely by stopping in the road lane and turning on the hazard lights doesnt mean its now ok and above the law .. makes my blood boil as well as cause major chaos instantly.

Schools moving out of town onto the ring road as in Khon Kaen where many new schools have located on the airport side ring road would be very helpful but would leave a lot of deralict prime sites in the city center which in this economy would just become an eyesore ..

To KP ...Dont think the traffic lights are poorly maintained now .. but the electrical system feeding them is some what dodgy especially in rainy season .. the lights also seem to be regulated ok but allow for the red light jumpers at every intersection and those that enter the light zone on amber then block the other vehicles from flowing thru on their green light .. bastards these people must be filmed and tracked down and given a dam good thrashing .

Lastly a nominated officer to be educated .. they are all already educated (didnt work).. and finally IMO just by enforcing the current laws and fines wouldnt stop the problem of RUSH HOUR TRAFFIC .. best to when ever possible just avoid traveling this time of day.

DM

[Doodoo]

DM to accomplish instant fines for traffic infractions would require certain individuals which are not available on the roadways that I have seen in 12 years

[tamada]

Noted your comments reference Traffic Lights, but please explain the vast numbers of cars at St Marys, which manage to completely screw up the traffic and times when picking up and dropping off.
...

Already covered in the post your responded to.

...
From my observations, lack of car pooling isn't the issue as most kids go to school on the back (or front) of a bike. Only the ones that go to Don Bosco and St Mary's seem to have individual limo service.

TBH, those are the two that I would normally encounter (try to avoid) being an "East ender" and there's now afternoon lane reductions between the end of the Big C flyover and the 'Makro' u-turn when Mariepithak empties for the day. There's at least three more in town where the schools totally bugger up the flows twice a day.

Traffic cops? Fuggedaboutit.

Thailand's RTP already has a dedicated Highway Police branch. They're the ones escorting the boy scouts and girl guides on their weekend jollies.

[pepesgrill]

that going to school rush is the craziest time of
day from 7-8 am . best stay off roads if possible

[tamada]

^ Sometimes the difference of just 5 minutes can make a big impact. I find that getting on the road before 6:55, I can get tam jr. to Suksa and be home by 7:15. If we leave even a little after 7:00, I get caught in the building morning rush coming back that easily adds 10 or 15 minutes to the round trip; an extra couple of traffic light changes. Same on running nong tam to his inner city school a bit later. Catching the traffic lull immediately after 8:00 is by far the most efficient as it's all pretty much buggered before that. But if we leave 10 minutes later, chances are we will get held up at the Phosi railroad crossing.

It's almost a science working out the best times for the first time. Then there are those inexplicably car-lite days where there seems to be less traffic interspersed with the "everyone's being an ass" days of total driving dipshittery.

[papafarang]

I go to makro at 5.45 am , if if miss that deadline then the next clear run is 9 am. . buy 10am chaos again

[tamada]

^ Did you get spuds? I'm after potato salad again.

<edit> asked 'n' answered on your PF thread, cheers.

[Rono]

Tamada, same here, 5 minutes makes a huge difference from Samphrao to Udon Phit. On sunny mornings 06.55 means half an hour difference with 07.00, leaving home and reaching the school that is. And on rainy mornings it's 06.50 or 06.55. On rainy days there are far more parents in cars then on motor bikes, same as us, which means jams at traffic lights Global house, Nong Sim Park and from sri muang to the school. And if we dare leave after 7 oclock we might not make it to the school before 08.15 and that for such a short distance. CRRAAZY!!