Thai Transport Ministry to speed up replacement of old public buses

[webfact]

Transport Ministry to speed up replacement of old public buses

 

File photo

 

BANGKOK, 16th February 2018 (NNT) – The Ministry of Transport has pledged to improve the quality of public transportation and accelerate the procurement of new vehicles to replace old public buses. 

Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith said on Thursday that The Transport Company, the operator of the provincial bus service, reported a 2017 profit of 16 million baht last year and 35 million baht during the first three months of the 2018 fiscal year, which started in October of last year. 

? Based on the company’s performance, Mr. Arkhom said that its profit for the entire fiscal year will be as high as 120 million baht, due to its cost controls and a boost in the package delivery service, which is expected to continue growing. He added that the company’s public bus service section has also helped it cut costs while the number of buses was increased on popular routes. 

He added that the ministry is planning to help The Transport Company to develop the quality of its service by instructing the procurement of new first-class buses to replace the existing fleet. 

The Transport Minister went on to say that the provincial bus operator will adopt the IT system and introduce a mobile application to facilitate passengers access in a bid to attract more to use this service and help boost its profit.

 

-- nnt 2018-02-16

[gunderhill]

Aren't they all still floating  out at sea from about 18  months  ago, talk about a  bunch of retards!

[Thian]

Great news! Boy do those ancient buses smell bad....i hope they will also train the drivers more, i see them stopping on the road all the time instead of moving to the left lane.

[PatOngo]

Here's a tip.........try fitting them with brakes that DON'T FAIL!

[Jonmarleesco]

The operative word is 'replace'. Let's see what happens to the pollution index when (if) it actually happens.

[Cadbury]

5 hours ago, webfact said:

Transport Ministry to speed up replacement of old public buses

Headline should read:

"Transport Ministry to speed up replacement of old public buses for the second time in two years".

Presumably there are still hundreds of them sitting around deteriorating on wharves and parking lots all over the place.

Surely something can be negotiated between the disputing parties to enable the release of these buses. Or is it just the usual stubborn idiocy.

 

[ChrisY1]

The old heaps of rusting crap called buses, will still be puffing along for ever....the photo above shows what is already here, but the commission money ain't right yet!

[PatOngo]

17 minutes ago, Cadbury said:

Headline should read:

"Transport Ministry to speed up replacement of old public buses for the second time in two years".

Presumably there are still hundreds of them sitting around deteriorating on wharves and parking lots all over the place.

Surely something can be negotiated between the disputing parties to enable the release of these buses. Or is it just the usual stubborn idiocy.

 

 

Negotiations have broken down.......and face is involved. Let's not rush in half cocked now!

[ratcatcher]

This thread is not about  the Chinese  buses supposedly purchased by the BMTA, (Bangkok Metropolitan Authority) that now languish in the company of decade old fire engines and equipment at Chonburi sites.

This thread is about the Transport Company under the Ministry of Transport procuring new interprovincial buses to be operated by said Transport Company Limited. 

.

Inter-Provincial bus.                                Bangkok city bus.                 Stored Chinese buses.

[eddie61]

School fees coming up? or a trip to Palit or London with the wife and kids? 

 

Yes, new buses is the solution...... expensive crappy new buses I hope!

[ben2talk]

9 hours ago, Thian said:

Great news! Boy do those ancient buses smell bad....i hope they will also train the drivers more, i see them stopping on the road all the time instead of moving to the left lane.

Lolz. I see about 8 large coaches at 7.30am driving past a junction - belching huge clouds of black smoke and mostly decorated with large patches of unpainted pollyfilla where bodywork has been 'upgraded'. These are not public vehicles.

 

Perhaps instead of 'upgrading' they could focus on setting a minimum standard, and employing a special kind of 'police force' that might take to the roads on bikes or in cars and start focussing on stopping vehicles with a view to take them in for a Ministry of Transport test...

 

Initially, they need to set up special classes - and possibly invest in some neck braces - the purpose of which will be to educate and prevent the 'Looking The Other Way' syndrome.

Edited February 16, 2018 by ben2talk

[jenny2017]

Could we just say that the Junta has- again - completely failed?

[jenny2017]

2 hours ago, eddie61 said:

School fees coming up? or a trip to Palit or London with the wife and kids? 

 

Yes, new buses is the solution...... expensive crappy new buses I hope!

Primary and secondary education is supposed to be free. Even when it's not worth to mention to anybody who knows a bit about education. Innit? - ) -

Edited February 16, 2018 by jenny2017

[jenny2017]

4 hours ago, PatOngo said:

 

Negotiations have broken down.......and face is involved. Let's not rush in half cocked now!

 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

On 2/16/2018 at 9:40 AM, webfact said:

Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith said on Thursday that The Transport Company, the operator of the provincial bus service, reported a 2017 profit of 16 million baht last year and 35 million baht during the first three months of the 2018 fiscal year, which started in October of last year. 

 

This entire article is about the Transport Co., which operates buses BETWEEN different provinces.

 

It's nothing to do with the sorry situation in Bangkok where who knows how many procurement purchase efforts to get the BMTA's REALLY OLD/ANCIENT buses off the road and replaced by NGV buses have failed for various reasons and at various points in the process.

 

[Thian]

1 hour ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

This entire article is about the Transport Co., which operates buses BETWEEN different provinces.

 

It's nothing to do with the sorry situation in Bangkok where who knows how many procurement purchase efforts to get the BMTA's REALLY OLD/ANCIENT buses off the road and replaced by NGV buses have failed for various reasons and at various points in the process.

 

I read that BKK will get 100 new buses soon, no more info about it which is strange, not?

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

2 hours ago, Thian said:

I read that BKK will get 100 new buses soon, no more info about it which is strange, not?

 

No mention of that in this OP, but it's a direct government press release, so who knows...

 

I've heard that so many times over so many years with the BMTA, that I think I've stopped counting and believing.

[jenny2017]

3 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

No mention of that in this OP, but it's a direct government press release, so who knows...

 

I've heard that so many times over so many years with the BMTA, that I think I've stopped counting and believing.

The same old buses? https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/957381-scandal-brewing-as-100-of-thailands-new-ngv-buses-are-held-by-customs/

 

 

Edited February 17, 2018 by jenny2017

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Ya, that's an old and early on report on the latest scandal with the latest round of NGV bus ordering in BKK.

 

This is the one where the importer faked that the buses had been assembled in Malaysia to save on taxes or duties and such, and in reality the buses were mostly assembled in China, which eventually came to light.

 

As best as I recall, most or all of the buses from that order, several hundred in total, finally made it to shore and have been parked in a lot somewhere awaiting the resolution of some dispute or another about the overall process having to do with money.

 

Last I read, they weren't likely to be going anywhere into service anytime soon.

 

-----------------------------------

 

Although now, I'm seeing this, which seems to be talking about an entirely different group of buses, not the ones already sitting here in storage. But not sure about that. 4 BILLION BAHT???

 

http://www.ngvglobal.com/blog/bangkok-mass-transit-bmta-orders-489-cng-buses-0110
 

Quote

 

Scan Inter Public Company Limited, a Thailand-based company engaged in natural gas industry, says SCN-CHO Cooperation signed a trade and maintenance hire contract for 489 Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) air-conditioned buses with the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) on December 27, 2017.

 

The overall project’s value is 4,261 million THB (VAT included; USD 132.1 m) and is divided into 1,891 million THB (VAT included; USD 53.9 m) for the value of the buses and a 10 year period of hiring for the repair and maintenance at a value of 2,370 million THB.
.....................

According to Thai PBS, the first batch of 100 buses will be delivered before the end of March this year, with the balance of order being completed in May.

 

 

Edited February 17, 2018 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

...
 

Edited February 17, 2018 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

It would seem, they're now talking about buying an entirely new batch of NGV buses...so who knows what will happen with the Bestrin Group ones from the last failed order.

 

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/bmta-buys-489-ngv-buses-cho-scn/

 

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/bmta-buy-ngv-buses-special-method/

 

And if you thought you'd read before about BMTA NGV bus contracting here's why you have:

 

Quote

 

The BMTA had called for bids for supplying the 489 NGV buses for six times.  In the first bidding, no bidders were qualified. In the second bidding, Cho Thavee Plc won the bidding but the BMTA board cancelled the bidding result because some legal problems.

Bestrin Group won the third bidding, but the BMTA cancelled the contract as the firm was too late to hand over the buses.

The fourth bidding was called off because of a legal problem.  The fifth and sixth attracted no bidders.

 

 

Here was one of the more recent reports about the Bestrin Group buses that made it to shore:

 

http://englishnews.thaipbs.or.th/mrta-seek-court-order-bmta-move-ngv-buses-land/

 

Quote

The Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA), an agency responsible for the operations of rapid transit systems in Bangkok and other provinces, will take legal action by asking the court to order the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA), the city bus agency, to move 84 NGV buses out of its land.

 

I thought there might be some additional Bestrin purchase buses still stuck in a Thai Customs lot somewhere... but not sure about that.