Thailand, Laos ready one-stop service at Mukdahan bridge

Thailand, Laos ready one-stop service at Mukdahan bridge

Two men sit on the bank of the Mekong River near the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge in Muang district in Mukdahan on Aug 31. (Bangkok Post photo)
Two men sit on the bank of the Mekong River near the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge in Muang district in Mukdahan on Aug 31. (Bangkok Post photo)

Thailand and Laos have agreed to implement a single-stop inspection system at the second Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge by the end of this month.

"A single-stop inspection in the CCA (Common Control Area) will reduce time at the border checkpoint. Any unnecessary procedures will be removed," government spokesman Sansern Kaewkamnerd said after a cabinet meeting.

The common control area on both ends of the bridge will inspect goods and people transiting in commercial vehicles.

Trucks and drivers going from Mukdahan to Laos' Savannakhet will be inspected by Thai and Lao customs and immigration officials in Savannakhet, while those entering Thailand from Laos will be checked in Mukdahan, according to Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith.

The joint-inspection process will be expanded to cover buses, private vehicles and the general public later, he added.

The process is part of the Greater Mekong Subregion development to facilitate transport among members, who also include Myanmar, Vietnam and China. The bridge opened for service in 2007.

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