post codes?

[ncr]

Don't sleep on your Vote! - July 15, 2006

"Don’t sleep so deeply that it will make you give up your rights. On 4 April, 1973 go to vote for your M.P.
Sent by: Mr. Choosak Yongjaiyuth, Way survey unit of Kokkloi, Phuket"

"April 4 The General Election day
To Khun Tien Pritchakorn 411 Phuphapakdee Road, Amphur Muang, Narathiwat"

What just sprang to my mind looking at that postcard (here (http://www.2bangkok.com/06/dontsleeponyourvote1973.jpg) and here (http://www.2bangkok.com/06/dontsleeponyourvote1973b.jpg)): apparently they didn't use postcodes yet, back in 1973. Does anyone know when were they introduced in Thailand?

(BTW - the card was sent from Phang Nga, not Phuket.)

[The Enforcer!]

Does anyone know when were they introduced in Thailand?

1982.

The Enforcer!

[BKKPages.com]

I've often wondered what major benefit postcodes actually have in Thailand as there are so few of them.

[The Enforcer!]

I've often wondered what major benefit postcodes actually have in Thailand as there are so few of them.
Not a lot! Even though all of Thailand is coded, it is a pity that having started postcoding so late that they did not use the more detailed 'Out/In' system used in the UK.

The Thai system is an 'Out' system, merely using an 'outbound' code. It tells the receiving Sorting Office only to which Sorting office to send it. Thus a Letter posted in Satun coded 10500 goes directly to the Chareon Krung Sorting Office, anything marked 10120 goes to the Suan Phlu Sorting Office. Then then resort by address.

In UK the code has two part 'Out' and 'In, the latter detailing the Delivery Office and the postman's walk! For my previous home code of SE21 8AE, SE21 is the 'outbound' code telling the receiving sorting office to send it to South East London and thence the Sorting Office 21 (East Dulwich). 8AE is the 'inbound' code telling the East Dulwich Sorting office to batch it between 8AD and 8AF and the send the batch to Delivery Office 8 (West Dulwich).

When the batch of letters get to West Dulwich, the Postman on walk 8A will take the batch and they will now be in the order he will find the addresses as he walks away from the DO along his route, i.e AB, then AC, then AD - AA is always a post/sorting/delivery office. A code batch (i.e. AE) will be a group of up to ten addresses, so all he has to do is read the final address when he gets to that batch.

Thus a UK postcode can tell your address within a small range of houses. Bigger mail users get independent (i.e. solo) postcodes like all of Boots Head Office is NG2 3AA no matter where in Nottingham it is.

FYI, Father Christmas also has his own special (non-standard) UK postcode .... SAN TA1 !



The Enforcer!

[BKKPages.com]

Right!

When we built business directories in the UK, the postcode was invaluable for measuring distances. With UK Postcodes being so tightly grouped, you can match a postcode (in cities particularly) to an Ordnance Survey grid reference (the median point of all addresses within a single code) with a fair degree of accuracy.

No such luck when we started building our Bangkok directory (http://www.bkkpages.com) with 'central' Bangkok being covered by just a few codes!