Bangkok public bus driver blames tuk tuk driver for crash that killed 1 and injured 3

A Thai public bus driver blamed a tuk tuk driver for an accident on Phetchaburi Road in Bangkok that killed one Thai man and injured three others last night, December 26.

The electric public bus number 69 from the Smart Bus company crashed into a motorcycle on Phetchaburi Road at around 8pm yesterday. After hitting the motorcycle, the bus turned onto the footpath and headed towards the petrol construction site.

The motorcycle rider, 28 year old Apiwut Autsawasubthawe, was pronounced dead at the scene. A female passenger on the motorcycle, as well as the bus driver and ticket taker, sustained minor injuries. They were taken to Camillian Hospital for treatment.

The public bus driver, 69 year old Suthep Wongkerd, claimed that a tuk tuk on the left side of the bus suddenly turned right and cut off in front of his bus. In shock, he turned left to avoid hitting the tuk tuk and tried to stop the bus, but accidentally stepped on the accelerator.

Suthep added that he then lost control of the bus and crashed into the motorcycle. He did not know what to do, so the bus continued to go on the footpath and hit the construction site.

The accused tuk tuk driver insisted on his innocence saying he did not cut off the public bus. The accident occurred during a heavy traffic jam, and his tuk tuk was parked still on the road. The tuk tuk driver claimed that the bus hit his car first and later hit a nearby motorcycle.

The witness, who was driving a car behind the public bus, gave a similar account to the tuk tuk driver. He said the road was crowded, but the public bus was moving at quite a high speed. The bus hit the tuk tuk and then the motorcycle. From what he saw, the bus driver did not try to stop the bus.

Officers from Phaya Thai Police Station would later check the CCTV cameras at the scene and question all the witnesses to determine the real cause of the accident.