It is customary and almost obligatory for people in Bangkok to complain about traffic gridlock, but along with the understandable grousing, we should not forget how much more liveable the city has become as a direct result of mass transit projects. Anyone who lived here on a budget in the 1990s can probably recall with dread the prospect of a cross-town bus ride, especially if it had to be done twice daily in the commute to and from work. The skytrain and subway have made life much easier for the city's residents and visitors alike, and realistically it's doubtful that Bangkok and the country as a whole would be drawing large numbers of tourists if it it were still such a slog to get around the capital. And while the fares are a bit high for the average salaried worker in the city, many still choose the trains because it allows them more free time to be with family or to do something more productive with their time than inching along impossibly crowded roads. Some of the more well-off with private cars are also choosing mass transit, although not nearly enough.
The existing rail projects were completed at a high cost in terms of both money and inconvenience during construction, but few would deny that it has been worth it. Mass transit still has a long way to go here, but compared with mega-cities such as Jakarta, where mass transit is still in its infancy, Bangkokians have good reason to be thankful.
It therefore makes good sense to carry on with planned rail projects as quickly as possible, even though they will also be expensive and cause inconvenience. And when feasible, more projects should be put in the works not only in Bangkok but other large population centres. It is sometimes argued that such projects should be delayed or even scrapped because they may not be profitable for some time, if ever. But if there is ever justification for government ''subsidies'' _ which in the best-case scenario merely means putting tax baht where needed _ this is surely one.
Under Bangkok's ''master plan'' for mass transit projects, which is subject to constant tweaking, construction of 10 new mass-transit rail lines in the city and surrounding provinces with a distance of more than 400km will be completed by 2019. One of these, the Airport Rail Link (Phaya Thai to Suvarnabhumi) is already operational and the Light Red Line's 15km section from Bang Sue to Taling Chan is nearing completion. The other eight projects are the Dark Red Line with a distance of 80.8km, Dark Green Line (66.5km), Light Green Line (55km), Blue Line (55km), Purple Line (42.8km), Orange Line (32.5 km), Pink Line (36km) and Yellow Line (30.4km). The routes will be extended to 464km by 2029. The estimated investment is around 400 billion baht and whether they will actually materialise within that time frame comes down mostly to money.
There are also criticisms directed at the city's mass transit systems that are really the result of their success. It can't be denied that during peak hours trains are uncomfortably crowded and sometimes passengers at the busier stations must let one, two or even three trains pass before they can get on. Overcrowding is a problem common to rail systems in many large cities and to some extent it is unavoidable. However, there are some measures that could and should be introduced to relieve crowding which will only get worse as more lines are completed and swell the inner portions of the Sukhumvit and Silom lines.
One solution proposed is monorail lines that would allow connections between the various lines without having to feed into the often chaotic Siam interchange. This would of course take time and cause inconvenience during construction. Another solution which could be more quickly implemented would be to install trains with six carriages, as the stations are designed for, and run them as frequently as every two minutes. Neither of these solutions is cheap, but if Bangkok aspires to continue as a great global city in the coming decades, the cost should not be considered prohibitive. One has to wonder if the enormous amounts taken in by the city's tollways, whose fees have just been raised, is being put to a better purpose.
There are also off-rail solutions that are well worth looking into, including the often discussed revitalisation of the city's canal system. Again, not cheap, but this is the sort of thing that could really give Bangkok a dramatic boost in terms of environment and transport.
And while we're talking about transport projects that have proved their worth, let's not forget the bus rapid transit (BRT) Sathon-Ratchaphruek line in operation on Rama III and Narathiwat roads since 2010. Many people doubted the dedicated bus lane would be respected by other motorists and chaos would ensue. But from its inception the BRT buses have been blowing by gridlocked traffic day and night. More and bigger buses should be added to the system.