The U Turn

The U Turn Ahead...

Possibly the most serious potential for injury and death. As a rider in Thailand they can make useful and handy way to make a change in direction. It must be said that actually executing a successful U turn can, on highways, be the difference between life and death. Stalling a bike on one of these while pulling away does not bear thinking about, especially if you're timing it between traffic.
Unfortunately it is often the case that others road users can sometimes use them in a more erratic and dangerous manner. You'll be happily making good progress at 120 km an hour or more, the road ahead can be clear of cars and all will seem well. Then all of a sudden, at the U Turn ahead of you, you see a 'pull-out' take form in front of you. Often, especially in the right-hand lane, it can be difficult to spot a waiting u-turner.

For this reason in some cases it can be good wisdom to move away from the right hand lane to the left-hand bike lane every time you spot a u-turn and you're on the highway at speed. That way if they do pull-out, you've made yourself less of a target as they will tend to hug the right-hand lane until they've built up enough speed. Thai people don't tend to be used to bikes going more than 100 kph in general and it's notoriously difficult to tell a bikers speed at distance anyway. If you see a waiting u-turner it can be wise to flash your lights at them to let them know you are at speed.