The Court of Justice is warning motorists to refrain from drinking before getting behind the wheel during the Songkran festival, as the number of accidents caused by drunk driving over the Thai New Year holidays has increased over the past two years, said spokesman Sorawit Limparangsi.
Mr Sorawit issued the warning after revealing the number of Land Traffic Act violations over the so-called "seven dangerous days" around the Songkran festival in 2021 and 2022.
In 2021, 13,103 people were found guilty of traffic law violations -- 12,213 of whom, or over 93%, were charged with drunk driving, 816 people were caught driving without a licence, while 40 were found to be driving under the influence of drugs. A further 34 people were charged with negligent driving causing accidents.
Last year, 17,909 people were charged with violating traffic laws, an increase of about 28% from the year before. In 2022, 15,609 people were found guilty of drunk driving, 1,274 for driving without a licence, 980 for driving while impaired by narcotics and 47 for negligent driving.
On the same day, government spokesman Anucha Burapachaisri said Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha had ordered all relevant agencies to facilitate travellers during April 13-17 in an effort to prevent accidents.
Citing the Injury Prevention Division of the Disease Control Department, Mr Anucha said that there were 1,324 deaths and 110,152 injuries during the Songkran Festival from 2018 to 2022. Out of the injured, 872 became permanently disabled, according to Sirindhorn National Medical Rehabilitation Institute.
Mr Anucha said that the deaths and injuries represented a loss of 18.3 billion baht, or 3.6 billion baht on average each year, according to the Bureau of Highway Safety.
Most of the accidents involved individuals aged between 15-19, he said.
The government's attempt to prevent road accidents is in line with the target outlined in the 20-year National Strategy to lower the number of injuries and deaths to 12 per 100,000 individuals by 2027.
"He sends his best wishes to officials and staff of the public and private sectors who are working during the holidays," said Mr Anucha.
Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry's Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation on Monday opened its coordination centre to help monitor and prevent road accidents during the holiday. The centre is chaired by Interior Minister Anupong Paojinda.
