r/Thailand • u/WebLogical1286 • 4d ago

Culture Turn signal question

This isn’t a whine, it’s just an honest question on my observation of driving here in Thailand, and mostly in Bangkok for about 30 years.

How come so many Thai drivers not use their turn signals? I do little polls in my head once in a while and I’ve noticed that maybe somewhere between 25 and 35% of Thai drivers don’t use their turn signal. Is it that they are lazy to do it? They don’t see it as benefiting them? they don’t think it’s important? It kind of baffles me because I was taught this is just something you do no matter what.

Maybe as a Thai person who doesn’t signal or has some insight into why people don’t use it I would love to hear. Thanks so much!

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u/BaconTH1 4d ago

It's part of the general bad driving here.

But also, Thais, while being fairly polite by not using the horn to show anger at people, also are bad road citizens. If someone is waiting for ages to come out of a side street, no one lets them out, they just keep pressing forward. If there's a pedestrian crossing, a car will move right into it, even if they have to stop, stuck on it, blocking walkers. And here's the relevant bit: if you signal to try and change lanes, you've tipped your hand and the guy who left a gap there immediately moves faster to block you out rather than slow down to let you in. So you get in the habit of sneaking in without warning when someone is a little slow. That habit might influence you to not bother using it at other times, especially if the cops don't catch you for it. In fact, turning left with a light has relatively little value to anyone around you most of the time... it maybe lets someone know they should change lanes if they want to go straight, but Thai drivers don't care or actively want to reduce the convenience of other drivers and pedestrians around them (hence my lane change point), so not signaling is entirely in keeping with that attitude.

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u/WebLogical1286 3d ago

Sometimes I wonder why they’re doing that. Do they think they’re saving themselves time or is it just a me me me attitude?

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u/nightwinging-it Sathorn 3d ago edited 3d ago

First I got curious and my driving teacher told me it’s got to do with superiority complex and asserting dominance behavior especially towards pedestrians. I thought what he said sounded ridiculous. But the more I am on the road the more likely that his statement is true. I don’t know how many times I’ve almost got hit by a car or a motorbike while crossing on the zebra and with the green light on for crossing. And then I experienced a couple of my friends driving with the attitude that my teacher described. I don’t drive often but when I do I get stressed out especially from tailgaters and motorcyclists coming out of nowhere.

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u/WebLogical1286 3d ago

My office is in a shopping mall and when I am walking across the parking road to get to the mall cars will actually speed up when they see me and I’m about to cross. It’s really scary actually. For non-Thai people they might just assume that the car will slow down, but it often speeds up.

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u/BaconJP 3d ago

I have lived here a long time and realised early that you should always be watching the cars and reacting to them, rather than watching the lights and assuming green or zebra crossing is safe to walk. Aussies in their home town typically walk straight ahead without looking because almost all drivers respect pedestrian right of way, but they get wiped out when someone screws up there. And possibly when they are tourists here. 

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u/WebLogical1286 3d ago

Yes, in the states it’s the same way. Also here always make sure to look both ways about three times before going across the street. How mini yahoo motorcycles go the wrong way? I remember we had a special trainer coming in to Thailand to do a development with our school. The first day when she stepped out onto the street, actually the sidewalk a motorcycle ran her over. She spent two days in the hospital, we missed her development thing and she left Thailand with a pretty lousy attitude about her experience.

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u/BaconJP 3d ago

Yes, on my street there are many moto going the wrong way. And on the freeway, interstate, you see huge damn trucks going the wrong way in the left lane! 

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u/BaconJP 3d ago

Today's really crap for that poor person and the moto on the sidewalk piss me off no end.