Cheaper trips for minivans out of Bangkok as new plans on track

 

Image: Daily News

 

BANGKOK: -- Passengers leaving Bangkok on minivans can expect to pay 20 baht less per trip for journeys within a 300 kilometer radius.

 

Plans are well under way to clear out the minivans from the Victory Monument, Din Daeng and Pahonyothin areas and land transport department officials have expressed confidence that everything will be ready for the new operation in October, reported Daily News.

 

A trial period will run through September 21st to 28th so that problems can be ironed out. All minivans are being moved to Mor Chit 2, Ekamai and the Southern bus station areas.

 

In Mor Chit 2 different areas will be color coded to help passengers find where they should go. 

 

For example vans previously parked in Din Daeng will be in the red zone and those that were at the Victory Monument will be in the orange area, it was stated.

 

Nopparat Karunyawanich said that appropriate places for the vehicles to park and exit the new areas have been identified. There will be convenient passenger and driver waiting areas, he said. 

 

Talks have also taken place with the company that runs the BTS and passengers are expected to be picked up directly from stations making connections easier.

 

Nopparat reiterated that plans were 60-70% complete and that everything would be ready for the October 25th deadline called for by the government.

 

Fares would be 20 baht cheaper because vans will no longer need to go on the expressway to get out of Bangkok.

 

Source: Daily News

 

-- © Copyright Thai Visa News 2016-08-17

Can I pay 20 Bht more, for a sane, competent, rested driver with a well-maintained vehicle?

Fare will be 20 baht cheaper for the van.   But it will cost us 30 or more baht to get to the bus station to get the van.

How about safer ones?

So the ar$e hole drivers will drive even faster and thus more dangerously in order to get back to pick up more passengers so they recoup their losses?

2 hours ago, tx22cb said:

Can I pay 20 Bht more, for a sane, competent, rested driver with a well-maintained vehicle?

Not in Thailand 

How about coming into town? How do we tell which van goes to Ekamai, and is the Din Daeng stop near the MRT?

Moving some of the vans to  Ekammai isn't ideal, it just creates more traffic on the already congested sukhumvit! The Southern Bus Terminal is so far from downtown, another inconvenient location.

 

I think what they need to do is build a central van terminal. Perhaps one of the SRT lands (one that is being plan into a big park) on Petchburi would be suitable. Its centrally located enough, yet right by the highway and the location has main roads that leads to different parts of Bangkok.