more traffic chaos - Sukhumvit road works

[joepattaya1961]

The buses coming from BKK go all the way to Dolphin Circle to turn. This probably adds 20-30 minutes to route under current conditions.

I go to BKK and back a lot. This is going to hurt. Every day there's another reason to abandon Pattaya.

Kaoboi, if you go to BKK on a regular base, why don't you take the Pattaya-Suvarnabuhmi Airportbus from Jomtien (Pratamnak - Food Mart).

From the airport you take the airport-link in to Bangkok, with different possibilities to switch onto the BTS/MRT

Moving away from Pattaya because of this (among other reasons)? Wouldn't do that........ok...unless you're about to change country.

This situation may take 810 days or maybe even 1,100 days, but Pattaya and the people in it will adjust rapidly:

- people find other ways to do their shopping, get laid or get drunk

- entrepeneurs and other good-doers find ways to make money out of this

- of course the 1st and the 2nd group meet up pretty soon

This THE chance for the "dard side" to lighten up.

[joepattaya1961]

I have been informed (Thai wife ) that the east side has been opened up again i.e back to normal. no barriers on SCC, Nerplubwan and Khow Noi.

Yesterday i noticed that Khao Talo is also 2 way from Sukhumvit

I think that they only put up the barriers if it is extremely busy and that makes things worse..........one day everything is ok and the next day everything is closed.....no consistency!!

[Degobuy]

a please wouldn't go amiss either.

PLEASE

[Subpar]

Arrived yesterday,

Just came back from a scooter tour to Big C Extra.

Pattaya Klang was fully open both ways at corner with 3rd road.

No blockade, no signs.

Did I miss the news?

Or is it temporary?

Thanks very much for that information KhunBENQ, and also all others who are posting with real-time updates. I live in Jomtien and go grocery shopping at both Big C Extra and Foodland weekly. The normal route we take is along 3rd Road then turn right into Klang to get to both supermarkets, then we come home along Sukhumvit down to Thepprasit. So this information is very valuable to me and I'm sure many others!.

What a nightmare this is going to be, or already is!!.

[emilymat]

siamCC at the bypass was all open in all directions this morning.

Thanks Don.

This is better news but still worrying. It seems to suggest that they made a mistake when blocking it off with those great slabs. But, and this is my worry, they appear to be making it up as they go along. It doesn't give you much confidence that the route you take today will be available tomorrow.

[topt]

siamCC at the bypass was all open in all directions this morning.

Thanks Don.

This is better news but still worrying. It seems to suggest that they made a mistake when blocking it off with those great slabs. But, and this is my worry, they appear to be making it up as they go along. It doesn't give you much confidence that the route you take today will be available tomorrow.

Unfortunately I think they are. According to my gf there was a concerted protest by a lot of local Thais especially on social media and the authorities reopened a lot of the roads again - the golf event may have helped in this as well.

I noticed they had re-yellow painted the double yellow lines on third road at Klang to take out the right turns (both directions) from 3rd road but these are being ignored anyhow and people sticking to the old markings. Accidents in the making here.......

[NanLaew]

The last weekend was reasonably quiet I reckon. Certainly not as manic as the previous one with the CNY weekend drivers down from the Big Mango. Despite being a pay day weekend, I reckon the out-of-towners spent it all the previous weekend. The junctions have all been repainted and the cones and barriers placed in storage until the next big weekend but based on my drive down Nerplubwan and back and forth on Sukhumvit yesterday, there's no one-way enforcement between Sukhumvit and Railroad.

The only strange thing was the temporary barriers at Klang and Second late afternoon Sunday funneling all cars and buses north. Seems like there may be more attention to solving the time-dependent bottlenecks rather than set the barriers out on a Friday night and leave them totally unattended until early Monday morning. We can hope anyway.

[longstebe]

Where does the tunnel start/finish once complete?

Edit: Google is our friend.

Pattaya Klang 1.9 kilometres towards Sattahip.

Edited March 3, 2015 by longstebe

[Don Mega]

Where does the tunnel start/finish once complete?

Edit: Google is our friend.

Pattaya Klang 1.9 kilometres towards Sattahip.

nah that got canned.

This current one is only 420metres long and goes under Klang. There is a second planned which goes under Tai and Threpasit.

[longstebe]

Where does the tunnel start/finish once complete?

Edit: Google is our friend.

Pattaya Klang 1.9 kilometres towards Sattahip.

nah that got canned.

This current one is only 420metres long and goes under Klang. There is a second planned which goes under Tai and Threpasit.

Oh ok mate, cheers.

[NanLaew]

Where does the tunnel start/finish once complete?

Edit: Google is our friend.

Pattaya Klang 1.9 kilometres towards Sattahip.

nah that got canned.

This current one is only 420metres long and goes under Klang. There is a second planned which goes under Tai and Threpasit.

So in about 3 years time, one can race from the gridlock at the Sukhumvit @ Nua traffic lights to the traffic jam at the Sukhumvit @ Tai traffic lights... and save all of about 4.8 seconds.

[Don Mega]

Where does the tunnel start/finish once complete?

Edit: Google is our friend.

Pattaya Klang 1.9 kilometres towards Sattahip.

nah that got canned.

This current one is only 420metres long and goes under Klang. There is a second planned which goes under Tai and Threpasit.

So in about 3 years time, one can race from the gridlock at the Sukhumvit @ Nua traffic lights to the traffic jam at the Sukhumvit @ Tai traffic lights... and save all of about 4.8 seconds.

They will prolly start the Pattaya Tai before this one is completed..... my guess is it will be atleast 10 years before any racing will be done.

[longstebe]

It really is the only negative about Pattaya.

[patsfangr]

It really is the only negative about Pattaya.

[chris2004]

Where does the tunnel start/finish once complete?

Edit: Google is our friend.

Pattaya Klang 1.9 kilometres towards Sattahip.

nah that got canned.

This current one is only 420metres long and goes under Klang. There is a second planned which goes under Tai and Threpasit.

So 2-3 years of chaos and 1 billion baht cost just to save having to stop for a minute at the Klang traffic lights - unbelievable.

[for real]

It seems a rather bizarre solution IMHO as this only makes Klang one-way (west) for a whole 260 m between the Third road traffic lights and the Big C Extra (Charoemprakiat/Arunothai traffic lights.

Earlier in the day, they had police directing traffic at the top end of Third at the Nua traffic lights... where they happily allowed buses coming in from Sukhumvit to make u-turns. I didn't go east on Nua but is this because they may have blocked the u-turn in front of the bus terminal to allow faster egress from Sukhumvit?

This is exactly what they've done. Found out today and had to divert clear across Nua to 3rd Road and come back to join the thousands heading for Sukhumvit to get to Nern Pub Waan. Fortunately I was on a moto, passing dozens of cars waiting at 3rd Rd to turn north or u-turn. What a disaster. They have installed the coloured plastic barriers, presumably filled with water. They are stacked really close together and run fully to the median ends so that not even motorcycles can get through. I assume the Bangkok buses will now turn later/earlier to a nearby soi on Suk and go the back way and into the bus station. Even more delays. Overall a disaster of epic proportions.

Amazing considering that the intersection is so narrow that most buses need to make a 2- or 3-point turn.

Maybe they should enforce lane management instead and insist that buses don't double park and stay in a dedicated bus lane when moving.... nah... too hard.

The buses coming from BKK go all the way to Dolphin Circle to turn. This probably adds 20-30 minutes to route under current conditions.

I go to BKK and back a lot. This is going to hurt. Every day there's another reason to abandon Pattaya.

Before Big.C was built on South Pattaya rd the place was called Duck Square.

It was designed so that the bug tourist buses could park there and the tourists enter Pattaya on provided baht buses.

.An excellent idea.

but.Mike [department store] and other places where the big buses parked said NO WAY...I want the punters brought to my doorstep with no chance of shopping elsewhere.

Something similar is needed now and for the next probable 5 years this new project will take.

[Kaoboi Bebobp]

Update on Pattaya-Bangkok buses. Because I take that route a lot, I was worried about the lengthy diversion to get into the station on Pattaya Nua. Well, the buses now do a u-turn just before Nua and then turn left into Potisarn. They immediately turn left into a small subsoi off Potisarn and right into the back of the bus station. Yippee!

[ThaiBob]

Where does the tunnel start/finish once complete?

Edit: Google is our friend.

Pattaya Klang 1.9 kilometres towards Sattahip.

nah that got canned.

This current one is only 420metres long and goes under Klang. There is a second planned which goes under Tai and Threpasit.

So 2-3 years of chaos and 1 billion baht cost just to save having to stop for a minute at the Klang traffic lights - unbelievable.

If it were only a minute it would be tolerable. The lights at Klang and SCC take 5 minutes to go through there cycle and if there is any traffic, can add 15 to your trip. I am not defending the tunnel as the best solution to this traffic bottleneck.

[patsfangr]

Where does the tunnel start/finish once complete?

Edit: Google is our friend.

Pattaya Klang 1.9 kilometres towards Sattahip.

nah that got canned.

This current one is only 420metres long and goes under Klang. There is a second planned which goes under Tai and Threpasit.

So 2-3 years of chaos and 1 billion baht cost just to save having to stop for a minute at the Klang traffic lights - unbelievable.

If it were only a minute it would be tolerable. The lights at Klang and SCC take 5 minutes to go through there cycle and if there is any traffic, can add 15 to your trip. I am not defending the tunnel as the best solution to this traffic bottleneck.

I totally agree with ThaiBob here. The backup on Suk actually stretched all the way back to the Rte 7 off ramp, and continued through the traffic signal at Pattaya Tai. To some degree, it's still very bad; due to the shrinking of Sukhumvit to only 2 lanes for a few hundred meters before and after Pattaya Klang.

But, like Bob, I do NOT support the tunnel. I very firmly believe that an overpass would have been significantly cheaper, significantly faster, and significantly less disruptive to traffic during construction.

[NanLaew]

Update on Pattaya-Bangkok buses. Because I take that route a lot, I was worried about the lengthy diversion to get into the station on Pattaya Nua. Well, the buses now do a u-turn just before Nua and then turn left into Potisarn. They immediately turn left into a small subsoi off Potisarn and right into the back of the bus station. Yippee!

That's a very narrow u-turn so the buses will be taking up two lanes in order to make that turn. The crossroads on Potisan is also very narrow so imagine the buses once again are swinging wide into the oncoming traffic lane in order to make that left turn up the back alley. Makes for a faster bus turnaround but buggers up about 20 cars-worth of turning traffic/bus.

[patsfangr]

Returning to the east side of Suk (Soi Siam CC or Nernplubwarn) really isn't too bad now; based on my trip today. I went to Big C-X to do some shopping at about 12:30. Route to get there was up Khao Noi to Suk; south to the u-turn before P. Tai; u-turn back to P. Klang; left down to Big C-X.

Coming back, I went up P. Klang to the small soi you must take to get onto Suk. No problem merging into traffic there. This was at about 2:00. I stopped at the new Au Bon Pain in the Index complex to pick up a couple of bagels (Man, am I happy to have them so much closer than the shop in Bangkok Pattaya Hospital! I don't know any other place to get bagels in this area.) Came out onto Suk, heading north, and went up the Rte 7 ramp. I took the immediate exit on the left labeled as the route to Rte 36. That dumps you onto the RR bypass, heading north. The first intersection is with the Water Treatment soi. I took that right turn; struggled a bit with the traffic there to make the u-turn, but got it done in a couple of minutes. Then the RR bypass south right back to Soi Siam (or as far as you want to take it, of course).

Really wasn't much of a hassle at all. But, as I said, it was a bit after 2:00. I'm sure it isn't as easy later in the afternoon/early evening. Still better, I'd bet, than making the u-turn on Suk, and coming back up in that stop and go mess to get to Soi Siam CC, Nernplubwarn, or beyond.

[Kaoboi Bebobp]

Update on Pattaya-Bangkok buses. Because I take that route a lot, I was worried about the lengthy diversion to get into the station on Pattaya Nua. Well, the buses now do a u-turn just before Nua and then turn left into Potisarn. They immediately turn left into a small subsoi off Potisarn and right into the back of the bus station. Yippee!

That's a very narrow u-turn so the buses will be taking up two lanes in order to make that turn. The crossroads on Potisan is also very narrow so imagine the buses once again are swinging wide into the oncoming traffic lane in order to make that left turn up the back alley. Makes for a faster bus turnaround but buggers up about 20 cars-worth of turning traffic/bus.

Yup. Traffic has to wait/stop for the bus entering Potisarn and wait for it to turn into the subsoi, using up the whole road to turn left. Then it uses up the whole subsoi to turn right uphill into the station.

Have to say Klang from 3rd to Sukhumvit was pretty busy today, as was overall traffic. Suk was heavy from North down to NPW and beyond. Don't know what was going on that made everywhere busy. From a motorcycle point of view, that is.

Until today though, it seemed like Suk traffic had been considerably lighter overall.

Edited March 5, 2015 by Kaoboi Bebobp

[NanLaew]

Seems that some drivers reckon that the one-way crossovers randomly enforced on Soi SCC, Nernplubwan, Khainoi and Khaotalo also applies to Nongkrabok way to the south. Nobody was going anywhere until a traffic cop on a motorbike showed up and sorted them out.

Not directly related to the road works but we all know parking spaces are at a premium in Pattaya, especially at weekends. Nice to see that The Avenue (mis)management have decided to extend their mildly successful CNY 'market' and have assigned a dozen of the short-term parking bays outside the front of Villa to food vendors carts.