Bangkok bus rehab plan calls for suspension of Bt130bn debt

[webfact]

Bangkok bus rehab plan calls for suspension of Bt130bn debt

By The Nation

 

 

A proposal to suspend repayment of the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA)’s Bt130 billion debt to the Finance Ministry will be put to the Cabinet next month, deputy PM and Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on Monday.

 

The proposed seven-year debt moratorium is part of the Land Transport Department’s rehabilitation plan for the Bangkok bus operator. The plan was agreed at a BMTA meeting chaired by Anutin yesterday.

 

Under the plan, the Finance Ministry will suspend repayments provided that the state-run BMTA begins operating at a profit within seven years.

 

Bangkok city authorities say the heavy debt burden prevents the operator from functioning effectively.

 

The BMTA and its executives will face a performance evaluation once the Cabinet approves the rehab plan and debt suspension. If the operator is unable to turn a profit after its debt burden is lifted, privatisation might be the next step.

 

" I think it's more of a reset. This [repayment suspension] will stop the bleeding and give the BMTA breathing space from the interest burden. Then it can find a way to manage the existing debt, for instance by gradually paying it off in the long term, or whatever is in the final proposed plan,” said Anutin.

 

The BMA had accumulated problems for more than four decades and could not solve the issues using the same methods, he added.

 

The rehab plan also covers cutting the number of bus routes to 162, safeguarding the BMTA’s priority rights for licences to operate new or changed routes, and a flat one-day fare, previously reported as Bt30.

 

Source: https://www.nationthailand.com/business/30394526

 

-- © Copyright The Nation Thailand 2020-09-15

 

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[steven100]

7 minutes ago, webfact said:

The BMA had accumulated problems for more than four decades and could not solve the issues using the same methods

haven't we heard this song before but sung by another large Thai corporation.

[steven100]

Thai airway comes to mind ..... 

[ezzra]

What is it with big companies here in Thailand that think of nothing that for years mismanage running those companies into the ground and ask for suspension and moratorium of huge debts and other freebies and handouts?...

[JonnyF]

No wonder they're in debt with all those brand new, environmentally friendly buses they've bought ????.

 

No doubt there are a lot of S class Benz in the Executive's carpark.

[PatOngo]

Ahh, Mr Sino - Thai........

 

 

[ExpatOilWorker]

1 hour ago, steven100 said:

Thai airway comes to mind ..... 

Add the State Railway to that list.

 

The newly appointed governor of the State Railway of Thailand, Nirut Maneephan, has vowed to tackle the agency's mammoth debt of over 100 billion baht.

[RichardColeman]

Mismanagement of Thai airlines, Mismanagement of Thai buses. 

 

Sure wish joe public could just tell the banks to suspend debt payments due to bad management

[Bender Rodriguez]

never made any profit on tax payers money, but now suddenly they would ?

 

how much money is stolen by the collector on the bus , shared with driver ?

[khunjeff]

9 hours ago, webfact said:

The rehab plan also covers cutting the number of bus routes to 162, safeguarding the BMTA’s priority rights for licences to operate new or changed routes, and a flat one-day fare, previously reported as Bt30.

Previous flat fare and pass schemes were all so fragmented and confusing that they didn't work - for example, they wouldn't cover privately run buses (which are all that operate on many routes), wouldn't cover A/C buses, wouldn't cover express buses, etc. Let's see if this one will be why different.

 

9 hours ago, ezzra said:

What is it with big companies here in Thailand that think of nothing that for years mismanage running those companies into the ground and ask for suspension and moratorium of huge debts and other freebies and handouts?...

In fairness, this is a public transit authority, not a company. In most places such authorities lose money, because their goal is to provide cheap transportation and encourage people not to drive. It's definitely mismanaged, but they should really work out some realistic expectations - and "turn a profit" is a totally unrealistic goal for a public bus authority serving many riders who have very little money.