Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha’s spokesman has dismissed reports that the prime minister said he would solve Bangkok’s traffic jams within three months, saying it was a miscommunication.
"What he means is he has asked related agencies to come up with new measures to ease traffic jams in Bangkok as much as possible within three months," Lt Gen Sansern Kaewkamnerd said on Saturday.
"Gen Prayut did not mean he would solve the problem in three months because he knew several factors were involved, such as decades-old city plans, simultaneous construction of a number of mass transit lines, the sheer number of 9.7 vehicles in the capital, eight times the appropriate load," Lt Gen Sansern added.
- Commentary: Pie in the sky
The prime minister on Wednesday was briefed by City Hall about transport and traffic problems that have increased in line with the growing economy and unbridled urbanisation.
Bangkok has 4,300 kilometres of roads but only a quarter of them are main roads. The proportion of roads to total city area is a mere 6.8%, compared to 21-36% in New York, London and Singapore, the prime minister was told.
Demand for ferry transport on the Chao Phraya River, the lifeline of the capital, was projected to rise to 480,000 over the next three years and to 840,000 over the next 10 years.
To solve the problem, campaigns have been launched to reduce car use and promote public transport. Rail will be the main transport mode in Bangkok by 2032 and investment must begin immediately for all 10 planned mass transit line totalling 464km.
The One Transport policy also aims to seamlessly link different transport modes.
The chronic problem of traffic jams has made headlines again this month after reports of "historic congestions" on Lat Phrao and Ramkhamhaeng roads where the Yellow and Orange mass transit lines are being built.