Mass Transit

[nycjoe]

I am happy to live here in thailand, Thais are on a different economic scale than westerners. In most instances you get a great deal in housing and food and many other things, the buses are incredibly cheap, just a few baht for everyone. I hear a lot of complaints about park fees and zoos, but suck it up. You can get a discount card at the movies. All in allow we are in a sweet spot.

[thurien]

10 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

I originate from London, where such a policy would not only be outlawed but unthinkable.

 

here, the old ranting again...

[Bangkok Barry]

48 minutes ago, nycjoe said:

I am happy to live here in thailand, Thais are on a different economic scale than westerners. In most instances you get a great deal in housing and food and many other things, the buses are incredibly cheap, just a few baht for everyone. I hear a lot of complaints about park fees and zoos, but suck it up. You can get a discount card at the movies. All in allow we are in a sweet spot.

On the other hand, a friend had a heart attack and was told he had indigestion, I had acute food poisoning and was told I had a cold (later at another hospital I was told I would have been dead in two days without treatment), a nurse even this past weekend gave me wrong treatment for a dog bite which has resulted in a bad infection which requires three visits a day to the hospital......
I could go on. They might be on a different economic scale (some of them, but tell that to the hundreds of thousands of homeless or using food banks in the West), but you play Russian Roulette with their medical services and every time you go on the roads.

[Bangkok Barry]

6 minutes ago, thurien said:

 

here, the old ranting again...

If you don't mind being a victim of discrimination and double pricing, then fine. Enjoy being a second class citizen while locals laugh behind your back for being a soft touch. But it is morally wrong.

[StreetCowboy]

10 hours ago, Thaidream said:

I use the MRT all the time- no ID required- simply tell them Senior or your age and they will give you the 50% discount with a smile. Well run organization.

 

The BTS does not give it to foreigners and it has nothing to do with government assistance etc. The BTS is interested in profit and nothing else. They have been ordered for years by the government to provide lifts that work for the elderly and disabled as well as escalators at all stations. They have ignored the order.  In addition- they should have put in place many more trains to avoid the current congestion. Again, delay and obfuscation- they could care less about the elderly and the disabled.

The original BTS was entirely privately funded, unlike the MRT, which had the tunnels provided by Government, if I understand correctly.  They suffered particularly badly from the currency crisis; I don't know about their current situation.

 

I think it would be cheaper for them to provide limos to take disabled passengers wherever they wanted to go than to redesign their system for a tiny fraction of their passengers, but if the passengers are not wiling to pay for taxis, then why should BTS?

 

SC

[StreetCowboy]

2 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

If you don't mind being a victim of discrimination and double pricing, then fine. Enjoy being a second class citizen while locals laugh behind your back for being a soft touch. But it is morally wrong.

You're right; if people like you don't use the BTS, maybe I'll get a seat.

[StreetCowboy]

2 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

On the other hand, a friend had a heart attack and was told he had indigestion, I had acute food poisoning and was told I had a cold (later at another hospital I was told I would have been dead in two days without treatment), a nurse even this past weekend gave me wrong treatment for a dog bite which has resulted in a bad infection which requires three visits a day to the hospital......
I could go on. They might be on a different economic scale (some of them, but tell that to the hundreds of thousands of homeless or using food banks in the West), but you play Russian Roulette with their medical services and every time you go on the roads.

You're right.  Maybe if you went to a hospital in The West I wouldn't need to wait so long at Burumgrad.

[StreetCowboy]

6 hours ago, Thaidream said:

The Phaya Thai station on the BTS does not have escalators on either side of the station up to the track and even Pom Prong is missing escalators on one side. Most stations have an escalator from the street to the first platform but not all have escalators up to the train track.

The reason for this is simply because the operator refuses to spend any money on improvements because they know customers must have the transportation  and they don't care about customers.

If some posters want to believe the BTS is not overcrowded they may want to get out of their own neighborhood and use the BTS from 400PM to 900PM. Most people are lined 5-6 deep waiting for a train.

To the poster who criticized me for 'whinging' I don't whinge- I tell it like I see it-  and I can assure you I know where Chidlom and Wireless Road is.  I've been there hundreds of times. Wireless Road is the English name- The actual Road is Withaya Road. I will continue to give my opinion as this is an open forum- if you don't want to hear it- don't read it.

I think some of our posters need to look harder for escalators.  Pom Prong and Asok both have escalators on both sides of Sukhumvit Road.  The elevated walkways have been greatly improved in recent years, and make it much easier to get about, even for non fare-paying-passengers.

 

The Operator is a commercial entity, who suffered greatly from misjudgements during the initial bidding phase, although later extensions were partly government funded, as I understand.  When you compare the BTS franchise to the Airport Rail Link, I wonder which do you find the more customer-friendly?  I know which gets the greater ridership

[StreetCowboy]

7 hours ago, Bangkok Barry said:

It also discriminates against those foreigners who work here, pay far more taxes than Thais and also provide employment within their companies for Thais. It is short-sighted and based purely on someone not being Thai. Plain and simple, really.

I don't really see why old farts should get a cheaper fare than I do.  If they're working then they deserve no special deals, and if they can afford foreign holidays, they why should they get a discount over the struggling working man? 

 

I can see why Thai pensioners might get a discount; if they did not, then the pension would have to be higher.  Good on BTS for giving them a discount, and saving the country money.

[khunken]

1 hour ago, StreetCowboy said:

I think some of our posters need to look harder for escalators.  Pom Prong and Asok both have escalators on both sides of Sukhumvit Road.  The elevated walkways have been greatly improved in recent years, and make it much easier to get about, even for non fare-paying-passengers.

 

The Operator is a commercial entity, who suffered greatly from misjudgements during the initial bidding phase, although later extensions were partly government funded, as I understand.  When you compare the BTS franchise to the Airport Rail Link, I wonder which do you find the more customer-friendly?  I know which gets the greater ridership

I don't remember any suffering from the initial bidding (though my memory is not great) but I do remember that they were supposed to supply escalators as part of the original contract, which they didn't do except for one or two stations. It took a court case to force them to do so and they have been extremely slow to fulfill their obligation. For example the one next to Soi 6 for Nana station has taken years to complete and I'm not sure it's finished yet.

 

Absolutely ridiculous to say that because disabled customers don't pay for taxis, the BTS has no obligation to cater for them.

 

Why compare the BTS to the airport link? A more realistic comparison is with the MRT which gets just as much commuters as the BTS and IMO is more customer-friendly to both disabled and non-disabled people.

 

BTW I see that the BTS CEO has made an absolutely stupid comment about the Spider card apparently inferring that the first service used get almost all of the return. Looks more like he's looking for yet another fare rise.

[ignis]

Talking of escalators why must they be so fast at many stations ? if there is no lift then one is forced to use the fast escalators... put both sticks in one hand, hold moving hand rail and try to hop on without falling.. getting off is as difficult and very painful 

[Damrongsak]

19 hours ago, Spock said:

... I'd almost prefer if I was asked for age ID!

Here in the USA, I beg the workers at the grocery checkout counter to check my ID to buy beer and cigarettes.  I'm 64 so it's easy to tell.  But my Thai wife got carded for buying me beer until she was well over 50.  Love these Thai gals.  One of my younger son's high school friends saw him in line at the grocery store one day.  Later he teased him about going to the store with his girlfriend.  "That was my Mom."

[Tofer]

Sorry for going slightly off topic, but as this has descended into a dispute over discrimination I thought this might interest some.

 

A FRENCH company running cruises (Luang Sai) on the Mekong river discriminates between foreigners who have to pay full prices and Asean country nationals / Thai residents who pay almost half the full tour rate.

 

Where did that come from, can anyone enlighten us?

[sandyf]

On 12/19/2017 at 2:50 PM, Bangkok Barry said:

What you say is nonsense. In the UK many city transport systems are at least partly supported by local or national government. Not one of them operates a one price for locals, another price for foreigners/non-city residents policy. Not one.

That is not quite true. I get the senior bus concession in England but not in Scotland, even though I was born there, Scottish residents only.

[StreetCowboy]

19 minutes ago, sandyf said:

That is not quite true. I get the senior bus concession in England but not in Scotland, even though I was born there, Scottish residents only.

Possibly local residents only, since buses are a local franchise.  Also, maybe not valid on the unsubsidised open access operators.  

[sandyf]

On 12/21/2017 at 10:52 PM, StreetCowboy said:

Possibly local residents only, since buses are a local franchise.  Also, maybe not valid on the unsubsidised open access operators.  

That is not the case at all. I know from personal experience with Stagecoach, a major operator throughout the UK. When I was in Scotland in August I could not get the senior concession, but my brother could.

Bottom line is that senior concession policy is on the same lines as BTS. entitlement is based on a specific criteria.

[StreetCowboy]

6 minutes ago, sandyf said:

That is not the case at all. I know from personal experience with Stagecoach, a major operator throughout the UK. When I was in Scotland in August I could not get the senior concession, but my brother could.

Bottom line is that senior concession policy is on the same lines as BTS. entitlement is based on a specific criteria.

Stagecoach is a national (international?) operator, but they operate locally franchised routes acccording to local franchises.  If the local authority says you’ll give a discount to pensioners who live in the district, that’s what they’ll give, and no more.  Why would they? Who would pay for it?

[sandyf]

3 minutes ago, StreetCowboy said:

Stagecoach is a national (international?) operator, but they operate locally franchised routes acccording to local franchises.  If the local authority says you’ll give a discount to pensioners who live in the district, that’s what they’ll give, and no more.  Why would they? Who would pay for it?

It is quite obvious you do not understand the senior concession system for buses in the UK.

[StreetCowboy]

6 minutes ago, sandyf said:

It is quite obvious you do not understand the senior concession system for buses in the UK.

You may be right.  To be honest, I don’t care.  My dear old mother gets cheap fares on the buses, her sister is not bothered one way or the other when she comes up to visit, and whether strangers get a cheap fare or not is unlikely to make much difference to the overall cost of service.

 

if I was a bus driver, in a fixed salary, I don’t think I would bother.  “OJ, Grandad; you’re not from round these parts, are you? That’ll be four pound forty five, and mind and tender the correct change”

 

i’n not sure there’s any documentation that shows you’reboth A local resident and a crumblie.  As I remember, before my dear old late grandmother passed on o greener pastures where the quiet waters flowed, she had a specific bus pass for the Corporation buses, and for the SMT buses.  

 

But it to be honest, I don’t care.  I pay full fare on the BTS, and if other people are unhappy paying full fare they can piss off, and maybe I’ll get a seat.  The last thing I want is to be stood next to some miserable Johnny Foreigner complaining that I’m not wearing a shirt and that I’m fondling  my rented Trollop. In both cases, i’ve Paid full fare, and I’mnot charging you to watch

[josephbloggs]

On 19/12/2017 at 5:15 PM, Thaidream said:

The Phaya Thai station on the BTS does not have escalators on either side of the station up to the track and even Pom Prong is missing escalators on one side. Most stations have an escalator from the street to the first platform but not all have escalators up to the train track.

The reason for this is simply because the operator refuses to spend any money on improvements because they know customers must have the transportation  and they don't care about customers.

 

That is utter rubbish.  Phaya Thai and Phrom Phong both have escalators on either side going up to the platform, as do all of the other stations.

[KhunMhee]

Everything I have read seems to point to making money. Not such a bad thing lets be honest the minor difference is not going to bankrupt anyone. If you're upset on the double pricing I would suggest staying away from the golf courses. It's not that bad as the prices are not outrageous. As for the train only having 4 coaches. Well they are full most times of the day and it is less to operate 4 than 6 so save money there. I would do the same thing if I was running the BTS. On that note its very nice of the MRT to give all around discounts.

[thaibeachlovers]

On ‎12‎/‎19‎/‎2017 at 8:51 PM, Bangkok Barry said:

If you don't mind being a victim of discrimination and double pricing, then fine. Enjoy being a second class citizen while locals laugh behind your back for being a soft touch. But it is morally wrong.

NO farang is "forced" to be "a victim of discrimination and double pricing" in LOS. Can't accept it? You know what to do.

[anon537687643]

NO farang is "forced" to be "a victim of discrimination and double pricing" in LOS. Can't accept it? You know what to do.

Well of course in LOS you have to ask the price of virtually anything (product or service ) before because most of the time it won’t be stated. And even then the “seller” will sometimes find some charge post agreeing’. It’s a case of “never accept it”


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[anon537687643]

You may be right.  To be honest, I don’t care.  My dear old mother gets cheap fares on the buses, her sister is not bothered one way or the other when she comes up to visit, and whether strangers get a cheap fare or not is unlikely to make much difference to the overall cost of service.
 
if I was a bus driver, in a fixed salary, I don’t think I would bother.  “OJ, Grandad; you’re not from round these parts, are you? That’ll be four pound forty five, and mind and tender the correct change”
 
i’n not sure there’s any documentation that shows you’reboth A local resident and a crumblie.  As I remember, before my dear old late grandmother passed on o greener pastures where the quiet waters flowed, she had a specific bus pass for the Corporation buses, and for the SMT buses.  
 
But it to be honest, I don’t care.  I pay full fare on the BTS, and if other people are unhappy paying full fare they can piss off, and maybe I’ll get a seat.  The last thing I want is to be stood next to some miserable Johnny Foreigner complaining that I’m not wearing a shirt and that I’m fondling  my rented Trollop. In both cases, i’ve Paid full fare, and I’mnot charging you to watch

Wow a Thai with a rant ! Make you feel good “stranger”?


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[InMyShadow]

I use the MRT all the time- no ID required- simply tell them Senior or your age and they will give you the 50% discount with a smile. Well run organization.

 

The BTS does not give it to foreigners and it has nothing to do with government assistance etc. The BTS is interested in profit and nothing else. They have been ordered for years by the government to provide lifts that work for the elderly and disabled as well as escalators at all stations. They have ignored the order.  In addition- they should have put in place many more trains to avoid the current congestion. Again, delay and obfuscation- they could care less about the elderly and the disabled.

They have installed a lift now at Nana bts but amazingly it only goes down one floor to the ticket barrier and then it's back to the disabled scratching there heads as to how to make it to street level

 

Are the powers that be really that stupid? There had better be plans for an escalator to street level or that lift was a big waste of money

 

 

 

[Bangkok Barry]

1 hour ago, thaibeachlovers said:

NO farang is "forced" to be "a victim of discrimination and double pricing" in LOS. Can't accept it? You know what to do.

 

You mean do the Thai thing and walk out on my family and leave my wife to fend for herself? And perhaps you can advise on how not to be a 'victim' while still enjoying the same rights as Thais. Please. Many of us would like to know.

[YT3k72Em]

Delete

[YT3k72Em]

That is utter rubbish.  Phaya Thai and Phrom Phong both have escalators on either side going up to the platform, as do all of the other stations.

Sapan Taksin doesnt have escalators to the platform level. Only up to the concourse level. Its stairs only if you plan on catching the train.

[YT3k72Em]

On 12/23/2017 at 10:55 AM, josephbloggs said:

That is utter rubbish.  Phaya Thai and Phrom Phong both have escalators on either side going up to the platform, as do all of the other stations.

Chitlom station doesn't have escalators from the street level on the Central side of the road.

[YT3k72Em]

On 12/23/2017 at 10:55 AM, josephbloggs said:

That is utter rubbish.  Phaya Thai and Phrom Phong both have escalators on either side going up to the platform, as do all of the other stations.

National Stadium station doesn't have escalators from the street level on the National Stadium side of the road.