Transport Ministry prepared for chaotic Bangkok Monday

[webfact]

Transport Ministry prepared for chaotic Bangkok Monday
By Digital Content



BANGKOK, Jan 11 – Bangkok people have been instructed to commute on public transport into the heart of the capital on Monday when anti-government protesters will seize the city to pressure the caretaker administration to step down.

Caretaker Transport Minister Chadchart Sittipunt held an urgent meeting yesterday with agencies in charge of land and water mass transportation systems to map out measures to alleviate commuters’ inconveniences.

The anti-government People’s Democratic Reform Committee (PDRC) announced a Bangkok shutdown which involves closures of seven major spots in Bangkok, including Pathumwan, Silom-Lumpini, Asoke, Ratchprasong, Victory Monument, Lat Prao and Chaeng Wattana.

Mr Chadchart said the seizure will impact 689,000 residents, 440,000 students and 1.2 million employees who live in or commute in the areas, saying commuting times will double.

He said the Transport Ministry will provide 41 parking lots to enable motorists to park their vehicles and switch to mass transport services. The parking areas will accommodate a total of 18,000 cars from different parts of the city.

Frequency of trains between the inner city and the outskirts will increase to every 15 minutes while buses will possibly run at a speed of 5-7 km/hour instead of the normal 12 km/hour, he said, adding that Vibhavadi Rangsit, Phahonyothin, Sukhumvit and Rama IV roads will possibly be the most congested.

Six expressway exits - Silom, Hua Lampong, Yommaraj, Victory Monument, Sukhumvit and Rama IV - will be shut to facilitate traffic flow.

He said the MRT underground trains can accommodate 15,000-17,000 passengers/hour and Airport Link 5,000 passenger/hour while express boats on the Chao Phraya River and Saen Saeb waterway transport 60,000 commuters/day.

About 600 shuttle buses will be available to service passengers between parking spots to nearby train stations.

Suwat Sidthilaw, Permanent Secretary for Tourism and Sports, said tourist assistance centres will be specially set up at Hua Mark, Don Mueang airport and Suvarnabhumi airport to assist and facilitate tourists.

Help desks will also be available at BTS skytrain stations at Siam, Phyathai, Ekamai, Wong Wien Yai and Hua Lampong railway station, while shuttle bus service to airports will be provided from Twin Towers, Eastin Grand (Sathorn) and Windsor (Sukhumvit 18) hotels for emergency cases.

He said the normal hotel occupancy of 90 per cent during the peak months of January and February has dropped to only 50 per cent and tourists have been recommended to divert to outlying provinces of Ayutthaya, Kanchanaburi and Ratchaburi. (MCOT online news)



-- TNA 2014-01-11

[JoeThePoster]

I guess buses will have to stop in the 3rd or 4th lane to pick up or drop off passengers now. That's chaos.

[DMG333]

Motorcycle service providers will have a busy and profitable week

[trainman34014]

Best thing to do for peoples safety is tell them to stay at home Monday, possibly Tuesday as well and then see how things are before attempting to get to work or wherever.

[LuckyLew]

They can talk all they want ... if they cannot control traffic flow during a non protest time ...

I give them zero chance of implementing anything that works

No matter what ... protestors will take the blame

[Scamper]

Of course, none of this is possible, nor will it happen.

Edited January 11, 2014 by Scamper

[PhoenixRising]

So this is being called a 'seizure' now?!!!

That's pretty bold for them (as government caretakers) to use that kind of language so early on in the game! There's a big difference between antagonistic protesters using it and when the government concedes. We can already guess what's going to happen.

Edited January 11, 2014 by PhoenixRising

[chainarong]

I think under the circumstances everyone is trying to get the best results out of a bad situation, probably if you can, staying home would be the best option, however everyone needs to earn a Quid, coming off a seven day holiday break , not everyone can afford to stay away from work, tourists would or should stay well away , it's times like these you need minties

[01322521959]

I guess buses will have to stop in the 3rd or 4th lane to pick up or drop off passengers now. That's chaos.

Just another normal day, then...

[SeaVisionBurma]

Troll post removed, along with a reply quoting it.

[kurtgruen]

Why anybody would want to live in Bangkok, is beyond me, but I guess enough people do.

All this, is great for tourism in the North. We get more and more people, in our bar, who stick around here, because they don't want to get caught in the Bangkok traffic jams, during this "Occupy Bangkok" time.

A lot of people, will be in the protest areas, others will leave town for a few days, to get away from it all, so I doubt, that traffic will be much worse, than it normally is, in Bangkok.

[taony]

There is no information in that article that will help people prepare to get to work tomorrow. Where are these parking lots, etc etc. Why is the airport link so damn inadequate?! They don't know how to organize traffic on a Sunday, why should anyone think they have anything under control for the 13th

Sent from my GT-I9500 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[jacko45k]

Why anybody would want to live in Bangkok, is beyond me, but I guess enough people do

Because it's mercifully free of pretentious Chiang Mai "expats".....

You don't think Bangkok people act pretentious when they are in other areas?

It starts on Hwy 7 or 3 or 35 or 9 or 1 etc etc

Can't get them to stay home nor take control of their problems.

[sprq]

What a farrago of useless nonsense -- train frequencies increased to every 15 minutes when they are normally much more frequent than that; 18,000 special parking spaces when only 100 times that would suffice, etc etc etc. Unbelievable you could call it, except that just about anything a Thai politician says is unbelievable anyway, so to say it is redundant.

[EricBerg]

All trains in the south are blocked. Three days maintenance to the railroadtrack, is the official reason.

A big hospital in Hatyai sends 100 busses plus a few medical teams and well equipped ambulances. Problems picking up passengers from the stranded trains. Police are far from accommodating. Not much chance for the busses to reach BKK.

Hospital management receives threasts.

I wouldn't be surprised if skytrains and undergrounds in BKK will be stopped soon too.

[FalangBaa]

Why anybody would want to live in Bangkok, is beyond me, but I guess enough people do.

All this, is great for tourism in the North. We get more and more people, in our bar, who stick around here, because they don't want to get caught in the Bangkok traffic jams, during this "Occupy Bangkok" time.

A lot of people, will be in the protest areas, others will leave town for a few days, to get away from it all, so I doubt, that traffic will be much worse, than it normally is, in Bangkok.

Because it's the only place in Thailand that's an international, almost "First World" city, where you can meet interesting people from all over the world who aren't just retired losers like in Issan or brainless beach bum drunks like in Phuket, you can buy anything, the cost of living is lower than any comparably developed city in the world, the interesting activities you can do are endless, shopping, nightlife and cultural events are incomparable to anywhere else in Thailand, and when you feel the need to get away for a while, you can fly very cheaply to anywhere in the world from the airport. Bangkok is a unique city in that it combines tremendous freedom, an "anything goes" attitude with excellent infrastructure, opportunities and endless entertainment possibilities, all available at a very low cost. Pollution is also nowhere near as bad as comparably sized cities in China, Malaysia, Indonesia, etc. There is simply nowhere else in the world like Bangkok, which is why so many people love it. I have travelled and lived all over Thailand, and now I'm content to stay in Bangkok. I no longer have any need or desire to go to overpriced, tacky Phuket, smoky boring Chiang Mai, sleazy dirty bottom-of-the-barrel Pattaya, dreary backward Issan or anywhere else for that matter. Bangkok is THE only place to live in Thailand for those who want to live an exciting, flexible, international lifestyle without necessarily spending a lot of money. I personally love Bangkok and couldn't imagine living anywhere else in Thailand!

[Slip]

Each day a more preposterous announcement. Tourists diverting to Ratchaburi? The tiny city/ medium sized town is not a place set up to deal with tourism or a Bangkok tourist overflow.

The car parking space quoted will service less than 100k people, while the estimate of affected people is 2.5 million. Add in the other plans mentioned and you're probably talking the ability to handle 300-500k people in the rush hour period (being very generous). Play safe and double that figure, and there is still a shortfall of at least a million or so people.

3 words: lame, duck, and... can you guess?

Edited January 11, 2014 by SeaVisionBurma
fixed font

[ragpicker]

I agree with you FarangBaa... for the most part. I lived in Bangkok for 12 years before moving to Pattaya. Like you I loved Bangkok, but I couldn't take the traffic any more. Now as Pattaya traffic approaches that of Bangkok, I kind of wish I would have stayed.

[DrTuner]

And when the inevitable happens, a malfunction or accident due to excessive crowds .. I'm happy I've stayed away from the ants nest.

[Benmart]

Why anybody would want to live in Bangkok, is beyond me, but I guess enough people do

Because it's mercifully free of pretentious Chiang Mai "expats".....

You don't think Bangkok people act pretentious when they are in other areas?

It starts on Hwy 7 or 3 or 35 or 9 or 1 etc etc

Can't get them to stay home nor take control of their problems.

Regional bickering is juvenile and only fuels an already complicated situation. Where someone is from, how they drive, which road and where they are going, is of no consequence to me.

Tolerance, civility and patience go much further and are a better alternative for me.

Live and Let Live

[Benmart]

Why anybody would want to live in Bangkok, is beyond me, but I guess enough people do.

All this, is great for tourism in the North. We get more and more people, in our bar, who stick around here, because they don't want to get caught in the Bangkok traffic jams, during this "Occupy Bangkok" time.

A lot of people, will be in the protest areas, others will leave town for a few days, to get away from it all, so I doubt, that traffic will be much worse, than it normally is, in Bangkok.

Because it's the only place in Thailand that's an international, almost "First World" city, where you can meet interesting people from all over the world who aren't just retired losers like in Issan or brainless beach bum drunks like in Phuket, you can buy anything, the cost of living is lower than any comparably developed city in the world, the interesting activities you can do are endless, shopping, nightlife and cultural events are incomparable to anywhere else in Thailand, and when you feel the need to get away for a while, you can fly very cheaply to anywhere in the world from the airport. Bangkok is a unique city in that it combines tremendous freedom, an "anything goes" attitude with excellent infrastructure, opportunities and endless entertainment possibilities, all available at a very low cost. Pollution is also nowhere near as bad as comparably sized cities in China, Malaysia, Indonesia, etc. There is simply nowhere else in the world like Bangkok, which is why so many people love it. I have travelled and lived all over Thailand, and now I'm content to stay in Bangkok. I no longer have any need or desire to go to overpriced, tacky Phuket, smoky boring Chiang Mai, sleazy dirty bottom-of-the-barrel Pattaya, dreary backward Issan or anywhere else for that matter. Bangkok is THE only place to live in Thailand for those who want to live an exciting, flexible, international lifestyle without necessarily spending a lot of money. I personally love Bangkok and couldn't imagine living anywhere else in Thailand!

Bangkok is a wonderful city, with many of the positives that are mentioned in the post. However, the descriptions of other locations could very well described Krung Thep as well.

Each place is home to families that are trying make a living, as wells as visors and expats of every color, persuasion and background.

There is certainly nothing wrong with being proud and happy with where one is living, but tolerance to other areas is also not wrong.

I try to avoid painting groups with the broad brush, which may overlap into my own domain should I use disparaging terms.

[Bluespunk]

"Transport Ministry prepared for chaotic Bangkok Monday"

Well, that's a first.

[nong38]

Just like every other monday then, come to think of it just like every other day!

[Prbkk]

"Transport Ministry prepared for chaotic Bangkok Monday"

Well, that's a first.

hah! I think there might be some youngsters here who do not know what it was like before BTS,MRT, elevated roads and expressways. 2 or 3 hours sometimes to get across town. Bangkok is a dream most days for ease of transport. Even on the big protest day with more than 50,000 ( maybe even 75000), it was quite easy to move around by BTS

[EricBerg]

All trains in the south are blocked. Three days maintenance to the railroadtrack, is the official reason.

A big hospital in Hatyai sends 100 busses plus a few medical teams and well equipped ambulances. Problems picking up passengers from the stranded trains. Police are far from accommodating. Not much chance for the busses to reach BKK.

Hospital management receives threasts.

I wouldn't be surprised if skytrains and undergrounds in BKK will be stopped soon too.

Trains leaving from Nakhon si Thammarat again. Means someone or some institution changed the three day maintenance stop. The busses from Hatyai are on their way to Bangkok. Trains expected to leave there soon too.

[wirat69]

Will I join the Mob on Monday?... YES
Am I afraid?..... NO
What if something happens?... "GREATER LOVE HATH NO MAN THAN HE LAY DOWN HIS LIFE FOR HIS FRIEND"
I love Thailand and support Thai people to have a fair chance, a free election and AN END TO CORRUPTION.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

He said the normal hotel occupancy of 90 per cent during the peak months of January and February has dropped to only 50 per cent

That's strange... I don't recall seeing that detail in the various TAT announcements...

I wonder if someone gave the Transport Minister the wrong talking points.

[Sunisalom]

So this is being called a 'seizure' now?!!!

That's pretty bold for them (as government caretakers) to use that kind of language so early on in the game! There's a big difference between antagonistic protesters using it and when the government concedes. We can already guess what's going to happen.

Anything can be called a 'seizure' now, since Chalerm got back on the scene. That's the size of it.

Grand mal seizure?

Absence seizure? (in the case of her caretaker)

MANY TYPES of seizures, by definition...exist// ... co-exist.

Seizure of government.... also known as 'coup de tat' could be known in the future as 'Suthep syndrome'.... or 'Siam paragonpoly?'

-mel. clap clap whistle clap whistle smilie.

[mcfish]

Why anybody would want to live in Bangkok, is beyond me, but I guess enough people do.

All this, is great for tourism in the North. We get more and more people, in our bar, who stick around here, because they don't want to get caught in the Bangkok traffic jams, during this "Occupy Bangkok" time.

A lot of people, will be in the protest areas, others will leave town for a few days, to get away from it all, so I doubt, that traffic will be much worse, than it normally is, in Bangkok.

what a shallow view of BKK. You really think we are going to pack our bags and bus it up to your bar up north and "stick around there " because of Mondays shut down LOL

err thanks for the offer but...

Edited January 11, 2014 by mcfish

[Jim walker]

So in other words Bangkok traffic will be just a chaotic on Monday as normal and there will be no change from the usual routine of traffic flow at standstill for most of the day.