Government to ease impact of bus fare rises

Government to ease impact of bus fare rises

BANGKOK, 25 April 2019 (NNT) - On the recent fare increases for public buses, the Prime Minister, Gen. Prayut Chan-o-cha, said today that the fare adjustment is in line with the resolution of the Central Land Transport Committee, and the government is seeking measures to ease its impact on commuters.

Prime Minister Prayut said the new fares applied by the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) would affect the general public to some degree. He said the government did not made the decision to raise the fares, since the issue rests with the Central Land Transport Committee. He added that the government will assess its impact and find ways to ease the burden on commuters.

"The BMTA’s fare increases may affect a large number of people. However, the decision rested with the Central Land Transport Committee, not the government. It is wrong to say that the government is increasing the fares after the general election, since the committee has been working and considering this issue well in advance. Nonetheless, we will assess the impact and find ways to alleviate the problem as much as we can. Services will also be improved. Today, old and new buses have been upgraded and this government has made this progress. We have to look at the BMTA’s rising costs. You are well aware that the BMTA has a substantial amount of debt, and it has affected all public and private bus operators. The fares had remained unchanged for a long time. It is up to the committee to consider its next move."

Concerning the Supreme Administrative Court’s order for the Ministry of Transport to pay 11.88 billion baht in compensation to Hopewell (Thailand) Company for the cancellation of a mega-transport project many years ago, the Prime Minister said the case is about how decisions in the past have affected the present. He said related parties will have to wait for the court’s ruling to be finalized so they can settle the issue and find ways to handle the consequences.