The government yesterday gave the go-ahead for the city's plan to build a 14km riverside promenade.
A model of the approved riverside promenade that will stretch from Rama VII to Pin Klao bridges and has been branded a new city landmark. PHOTO COURTESY OF DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS
The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration's (BMA) Department of Public Works yesterday proposed the promenade project, called the "New Landmark of Thailand", to Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Prawit Wongsuwon at a closed-door meeting at City Hall.
The meeting was also attended by Bangkok governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra and representatives from the Bureau of the Royal Household, Prime Minister's Office, Culture Ministry, Royal Thai Navy, Royal Thai Army, and Royal Thai Air Force.
A BMA source said the meeting discussed the current condition of the plot along the Chao Phraya River, the structure of the promenade, and problems and impacts of the project on the communities.
He said the promenade will stretch between Rama VII and Pin Klao bridges and it will be built above the Chao Phraya River. The strip, which measures 20 metres wide and 7km long on each side of the river, will be a car-free zone.
Co-headed by the BMA and Interior Ministry, the project was originally designed to be a road to alleviate traffic, but was later changed to be a recreational space for the public. A committee of 34 members to work on the project was set up on Jan 6 and chaired by Gen Prawit.
No expropriation will be required, the source said. However, 268 families who have encroached on the river in some areas will be relocated to a new housing location provided by the state. The project will be fully funded by the government, added the source, with an expected budget of about 20 billion baht.
Gen Prawit was quoted as telling the meeting that the promenade is a gift from the prime minister to the city. The promenade will also boost tourism and economy in the area, according to the source.
Gen Prawit also told the BMA to speed up the original proposed 14-month plan to study the environmental impacts and organise public hearings on the project. Once approved, the construction should take about 18 months, the source said.
Nonn Panitwong, a water ecology adviser at Green World Foundation, said construction of the promenade is unlikely to affect the ecological system but it could slow down the flow of the irrigation system.
Associate professor Chuvit Sucha-xaya from Arsom Silp Institute of the Arts said the megaproject, if built, will hurt both tangible and intangible assets like the views of old temples and the way of life of people who live along the river. He also said it would be unreasonable for the state to build a superstructure above the river after it relocates families whose residences slow down the irrigation flow and who are also deemed to be encroaching on the river. The width of the river in the Pin Klao area is only about 300 metres.
Apart from being an outlet that helps to drain water from the upper part of the country to the Gulf of Thailand, the river is also the venue for the royal barge procession.
"There won't be enough space for the royal barge procession," he said.