500 Million Baht Sukhumvit Road Improvements

[cali4995]

Sukhumvit upgrades are costing 500M baht says Ronakit

City hall is spending almost 500 million baht on upgrading Sukhumvit Road, the main artery into Pattaya.

Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh, whose brief includes the city’s public utilities, says that the plan is to improve the flow of the traffic and also to beautify the highway to improve the image of Pattaya as an international resort.

The upgrading involves 14 kilometers of Sukhumvit and involves a budget of 477 million baht.

There are four main components to the plan. Under an expenditure of 150 million baht, the number of highway lanes is being increased from three to four, along with the provision of a sidewalk. Another 150 million baht will see the installation of about 200 high-mast streetlights along the route. The planting of trees and shrubs along the median, together with sprinklers and rainwater traps is costing another 77 million baht. The remaining 100 million baht will be spent on traffic engineering and signboarding to accommodate the expansion to four lanes.

Ronakit said that this total amount is substantial, but the result should be an impressive and efficient approach highway for visitors to the city. The deputy mayor added that it is estimated income from tourists to Pattaya is approximately 5 billion baht per year. Compared to this, a budget of 500 million baht for desperately needed improvements is not an unreasonable amount.

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Yet "another" sukhumvit road beautification project? Aren't there a number of really pressing

things the city genuinely needs? Is this just awarding special contracting jobs to friends? The

management of these public funds and some of these endless, repetitive, public works

projects are really distressing with so many other essential things left ignored.

Edited May 20, 2007 by cali4995

[Irene]

Sukhumvit upgrades are costing 500M baht says Ronakit

City hall is spending almost 500 million baht on upgrading Sukhumvit Road, the main artery into Pattaya.

Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh, whose brief includes the city's public utilities, says that the plan is to improve the flow of the traffic and also to beautify the highway to improve the image of Pattaya as an international resort.

The upgrading involves 14 kilometers of Sukhumvit and involves a budget of 477 million baht.

There are four main components to the plan. Under an expenditure of 150 million baht, the number of highway lanes is being increased from three to four, along with the provision of a sidewalk. Another 150 million baht will see the installation of about 200 high-mast streetlights along the route. The planting of trees and shrubs along the median, together with sprinklers and rainwater traps is costing another 77 million baht. The remaining 100 million baht will be spent on traffic engineering and signboarding to accommodate the expansion to four lanes.

Ronakit said that this total amount is substantial, but the result should be an impressive and efficient approach highway for visitors to the city. The deputy mayor added that it is estimated income from tourists to Pattaya is approximately 5 billion baht per year. Compared to this, a budget of 500 million baht for desperately needed improvements is not an unreasonable amount.

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

Yet "another" sukhumvit road beautification project? Aren't there a number of really pressing

things the city genuinely needs? Is this just awarding special contracting jobs to friends? The

management of these public funds and some of these endless, repetitive, public works

projects are really distressing with so many other essential things left ignored.

Well, at least there will be one progress in one area!!!

[cali4995]

honestly, we can spend 500m baht on sukhumvit road but the stray dog problem is

still so intense, anywhere downtown you have to skip down the sidewalk like it's

a minefield?

beach road projects? they plant a few hundred palm trees and two weeks later

most of them are dead?

almost all of the original palm trees have fallen in the sea because of the beach erosion

i guess from being used as a powerboat ramp from the 300+ speedboats? wasn't

that what bali-hai was for? it's all bordering on criminal neglect.

[Mobi]

Is this just awarding special contracting jobs to friends?

Yes

[Beardog]

Is this just awarding special contracting jobs to friends?

Yes

At least something will be allocated towards the hideous roads here even if it is only 10 million after the greasing of the palms are done! When all this really will take place, I am sure it is as usually pure speculation.

But I am happy they at least acknowledged we have a problem here instead of doing the usual clowed eye program!!!!!

Barry Shulman

[Humphrey Bear]

honestly, we can spend 500m baht on sukhumvit road but the stray dog problem is still so intense, anywhere downtown you have to skip down the sidewalk like it's a minefield? beach road projects? they plant a few hundred palm trees and two weeks later most of them are dead? almost all of the original palm trees have fallen in the sea because of the beach erosion i guess from being used as a powerboat ramp from the 300+ speedboats? wasn't that what bali-hai was for? it's all bordering on criminal neglect.

A year or more ago there was a proposal reported in TV Pattaya Forum regarding importing lots of sand to revitalise the beach. U asked then if anyone had studied the scour effects of the local tides and currents.

When you see several small bays like Pattaya, Jomtien, Naklua and so on side by side, it often indicates that there are scour patterns that will take the beach away one day, bring it back months later.

Had one dredging job to clear 300,000 cubic metres of sea-bed to make a channel for a new port. Spent a couple of months dredging the first 100,000. Then, literally overnight, the sea took the rest away - plus a lot more! Sent the client a notification of completion and got the hel_l out of Dodge next day.

[CGW]

I couldn't help but notice today that yet again Sukhumvit is getting another major overhaul, how many years and lives will this section cost?

[naka]

Is this just awarding special contracting jobs to friends?

Yes

Yes.

Naka.

[CGW]

I drove down Thappaya as well today and witnessed a tourist falling in one of the many holes on the so called sidewalk!

Really cracking on with that section!

[Chang_paarp]

I couldn't help but notice today that yet again Sukhumvit is getting another major overhaul, how many years and lives will this section cost?

The current crop of digging appears to be to lay pipes under the road. My guess is sewage, or water depending on the direction of flow.

To give the people doing the job their due, they are getting it done fairly quickly, as to quality and other issues regarding final usability well, that is anyone's guess.