Traffic checkpoints are a common sights on the streets of Pattaya like the one on Pattaya Second Road the other evening between Soi's 10 and 11.
Motorists and motorcyclists consider them a pain in the nether regions as well as a major inconvenience. The police officers may seem petty in checking that drivers have the correct paperwork for their vehicles and driving licences and ID Cards. Fining someone for not wearing a helmet or ensuring their passenger wears a helmet may seem like a money making operation for the city. But there are reasons - like saving lives - not wearing a helmet is just plain stupid and can often prove a fatal mistake when one considers the driving skills of the local Thais and the preponderance in an International resort of foreigners who are too drunk to realise that they should not be in charge of a potential lethal machine.
And of course searches of stopped vehicles sometimes bring to light weapons and drugs that when seized makes Pattaya a safer place for everyone.
