Japanese student on a Thai sidewalks mission

Megumi Morimota in her student uniform at Kasetsart University Chalermphrakiat Sakhonnakhon province campus in Sakon Nakhon province. (Photo from @PRKUCSC Facebook account)

A Japanese student who has become the talk of the town in a video clip showing her standing in the way of bikers on a footpath has sent a clear message on her heroic mission.

"Drivers of all kinds of vehicles must drive with responsibility," Megumi Morimota said in an interview on Thursday on the Facebook page of Kasetsart University Chalermphrakiat Sakhonnakhon province campus in Sakon Nakhon province.

A video clip shows Megumi Morimota blocking motorists on the footpath in Bangkok on Tuesday. (Video from Udomsak Nakinjaeng)

Ms Morimota won praise after a clip posted by Udomsak Nakinjaeng on his Facebook account showing her on a sidewalk, blocking the shortcut bikers like to use and directing them to use the road. The clip was posted on Tuesday at Lam Sali intersection in Bangkok. She was in the Thai capital on Tuesday for a medical checkup.

The student from Hiroshima prefecture said she humbly told motorcyclists on Tuesday that it was dangerous to drive on the footpath as they could hit pedestrians. "Some bikers accepted my explanations but others were angry I got in their way," she added.

Ms Morimota said she would continue her mission against bikers on sidewalks, regardless of the consequences. The Japanese student said she had done that several dozen times during her six-year stay in Thailand.

"All vehicles are banned from using footpaths. If an accident happens, will the driver be responsible for it?" she said.

Ms Morimota studies at the Faculty of Natural Resources and Agro-Industry. She asked for a transfer from Kasetsart Unversity's main campus in Bangkok to Sakon Nakhon after enduring long hours of travel from her place to Bang Khen.