City Hall will raise the fine imposed on motorcyclists who flout the law prohibiting them from driving on pavements to twice the current rate, following the recent case of a teenage pedestrian being hit and injured by a motorcycle on a footpath in Bangkok.
The new fine of 1,000 baht will take effect from next month, said deputy Bangkok governor Sakoltee Phattiyakul yesterday.
He made the remarks just days after a teenage girl was knocked down by a motorcycle hogging the pavement in Wang Thonglang district. Kulnee Chanraweetura, 16, was hospitalised after the incident but is now recovering from her injuries.
Despite a crackdown by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) on motorcycles that abuse the no-pavement rule in May, the trend is still rampant, he said.
Along with the fine hike, the BMA said it will increase the number of checkpoints supporting the crackdown from 115 to 233.
Back in May the BMA encouraged members of the public to cooperate by filming or taking a picture of any motorcyclist spotted breaking the law so it could be used as evidence against them.
As a result, more than 10,000 cases were reported to the BMA, yielding total fines in excess of 4 million baht, he said. Whistleblowers were entitled to a share of the fine.
More than 2,000 people who provided assistance to the BMA in this way have already been paid, he added.
Wang Thonglang was found to be the place where the law is most frequently broken, followed by Suan Luang, Lat Krabang and Watthana districts, the deputy governor said.
Such violations are normally common in areas where the nearest U-turn is relatively far away, prompting irresponsible motorcyclists to intentionally drive in the wrong lane and take the pavement instead, he said.
On Tuesday, 23-year-old motorcycle messenger Phuwadol Srisamrong turned himself in to police at Chok Chai station and admitted he was the one who rammed into Kulnee.
He was charged with reckless driving and using the pavement without good reason. He was released temporarily.
The messenger told police he was in a hurry at the time of the incident. He said he had to travel to Soi Lat Phrao 112 where traffic congestion was bad, so he decided to ride his motorcycle on the pavement instead.
