The Transport Ministry is looking to set up a committee to direct the implementation of the government's 2-trillion-baht infrastructure overhaul scheme.
Either Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra or one of her deputies will chair the panel, Transport Minister Chadchat Sittipunt said.
Representatives of the National Economic and Social Development Board and the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning would serve as the secretariat of the committee, he said.
"The committee will function, more or less, like a project adviser whose main responsibility is to follow up on the work progress of every concerned agency," he said. "Without the committee, implementation of the project may move too slowly."
The Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade of Thailand have recommended an independent organisation be established to monitor the 2-trillion-baht project and ensure its transparency.
Mr Chadchat said that even though the project was deemed to be outside of the usual spending of the government budget, the government was making sure that spending in related projects would be managed prudently. Mr Chadchat was trying to dispel concerns of a lack of transparency and said he was ready to allow the auditing of the projects as long as it is not against state regulations.
He also said his ministry was in the process of setting standards for selecting the operators of public transport services such as the operator of the ports.
From now on, a contender that offers the lowest fare would win the selection instead of one that offers the highest benefits to the ministry, he said.