Traffic snarls to last five years

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Traffic snarls to last five years

Railway projects, vehicle boom battle for space

Published: 1 Jan 2013 at 00.00
Newspaper section: News

The Transport Ministry is warning Bangkok residents to brace for what could be five years of extraordinary traffic congestion.

Traffic at the Silom-Rama IV Road intersection is flowing well, particularly now with so many motorists having left Bangkok to celebrate New Year in the provinces. The Transport Ministry is warning Bangkok motorists to brace for traffic congestion this year from a dramatic increase in the number of private cars. (Photo by Patipat Janthong)

The addition of more than 1 million new cars as part of the first car-buyer scheme, coupled with less road space during the onset of several new electric railway projects could make Bangkok commutes even more miserable.

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supanut
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Discussion 29 : 01 Jan 2013 at 12.1129
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Interesting plans, but I even wonder if they will even commence. I'm sick of Bangkok traffic. That is why on weekends I mostly only go to places reachable by either the BTS or MRT. Currently I go to school by car, but if traffic congestion is too bad in the future, I may choose to go by BTS instead. Traveling by rail is much more efficient than traveling by cars.
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Renaissance
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Discussion 28 : 01 Jan 2013 at 12.0328
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Is this the old Thaksin strategy? Create a problem and then say, "I can solve it for you"? He knew that his populist scheme would cause gridlock, but he did it to get votes. Now that the inevitable mess is being created, he says he can solve the problem. And the Thais lap it up and love him as their Saviour.
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drsmith
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Discussion 27 : 01 Jan 2013 at 11.4327
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"Bangkok can accommodate 1.6 million vehicles, but last year there were more than 7 million registered vehicles in the city". I honestly think a first grade math student can figure this problem out! Seriously Thailand, are you that silly that you cannot understand the basic concept ? Show me any glass that can hold 7 times more water than it was designed to hold? A few powerful corrupt car sellers reap the rewards while the entire country gets suffocated in gridlock. This is to absurd to believe and shows an absolute lack of education or concern for society at work.
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drsmith
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Discussion 26 : 01 Jan 2013 at 11.2226
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Is this government not smart enough to understand you cannot put 10 liters of water in a 5 liter jug? Adding a million cars to infrastructure that is already massively overcrowded? One has to ask the question where is the LOGIC in that? I for one, never go to Bangkok. As congestion worsens many others will stop going as well. When that happens, businesses across the board will see decreases in income. The reason to offer discounts for new cars is just another ridiculous legal vote buying scandal because it surely has no common sense involved. Hard to believe people can run a country without very basic common sense.
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bkk1
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Discussion 25 : 01 Jan 2013 at 11.1625
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Guess in 5 years they hope we forgot this message

Happy New Yrar
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loong
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Discussion 24 : 01 Jan 2013 at 11.1524
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All those mega-projects will enrich the construction companies and politicians. Traffic problem won't get better no matter what they try. People are greedy, selfish and ignorance, no respect for others that include all those food stalls on side-walks, the shop owner who charge for space on the foot-path, the police "tes-sa-kit" also a "do nothing" to all those illegal sale on side-walks. Klong-thom and Central hospital are a mess from Friday night till Sunday.
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DonAleman
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Discussion 23 : 01 Jan 2013 at 11.1023
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Commenters made a number of good suggestions of which the best and, I think, only, viable solution is to Set up the "Park, ( outside the city proper)free, purchase large shuttle vans, (the "Ride" ),and, for the plan to work at it's best, ban all but emergency or mass transit, (busses)from the city metro areas. Each van would remove 12 to 15 autos and the attendent pollution, accidents, allow emergency vehicles, smbulance,fire, police,to perform speedily
and, by comparison to other alternatives, be done quickly and less costly. Old, highly polluting,slow moving autos can, as they were in the U.S., be bought and scrapped by the government.
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lungstib
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Discussion 22 : 01 Jan 2013 at 10.5322
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No real plan in this at all, just wishful thinking. And by 2017 who knows what we will be looking at. Buy a bike maybe?
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borrocks
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Discussion 21 : 01 Jan 2013 at 10.1921
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does anyone really believe this garbage? in 5 years there will be a list of other problems causing delays...Bangkok is simply growing too fast that is the problem no one wants to admit.

I got out of BKK 2 years ago and what a difference on my health plus so much more time to do quality things, not just sitting in traffic for hours or being pushed along like sheep on the public transport systems.
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dao
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Discussion 20 : 01 Jan 2013 at 10.1520
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Cars are the problem notthe solution as the governemnt seems to promote .We now have gridlock up country as reported today .Trains and subways are and have been the answer for years now .The only possible explanation I can come up with is that politicians dont have to wait in traffic because they have an escort and roads are cleared and that they must hold a lot of stock in PTT and dont want to see the profits fall .
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