It appears designers of the
newly built speed bumps / wheelchair crossings forgot another important
detail, as the newly installed pedestrian signal stop buttons have been
placed too high for wheelchair users to reach.
Veechan Souksi
With Pattaya’s traffic-light system having proved a monumental and
expensive failure, city hall has ordered construction of raised “speed bump
walkways” to slow cars and help pedestrians cross Beach Road.
The surfaces - designed to be 20 cm. high and 7 m. wide - were designed to
keep crossing pedestrians in groups where they can be seen by motorists who
flagrantly ignored red lights at pedestrian crossings throughout the city.
They also make it easier for wheelchairs to move between sidewalks.
Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh said the accessibility measures, part of a 139
million baht beachfront renovation project, are being installed at the
intersections of Soi 3, Soi 9 and near Walking Street. Construction,
however, has proved to be another Pattaya infrastructure boondoggle.
The walkways’ height and narrow width were being blamed for a string of
accidents, mostly involving drunk and speeding motorcyclists who refused to
slow down or barreled through construction zones while drunk driving.
Instead of ordering police to crack down on reckless drivers, Ekasingh on
Dec. 19 ordered construction halted, already-completed bumps ripped up, and
work begun anew, this time on slightly lower, doubly wide paths that should
upend speeders less often.
Wheelchair students from the Father Ray Foundation demonstrated the benefit
of the first of the revised paths in front of the A-One hotel, proving it
was possible to cross Beach Road if the area is mobbed by politicians and
reporters. Real-world results are still pending.
It’s not the first time Pattaya has tried to reign in motorbikes to protect
pedestrians. In 2010, the city spent millions of baht to install 42 traffic
signals around the area. Drivers - including police - simply ignored the red
lights. Four months later officially was declared a failure as city hall
turned them off or changed them to blink permanently yellow.
