The Expressway Authority of Thailand will give a five-baht discount per trip for Easy Pass users at the Asoke 4 entrance ramp of the Si Rat Expressway to ease traffic congestion in the area.
The proposal for the 10%-discount on the 50-baht toll has been approved by its board and will come into effect soon in a two-month trial, according to Thai media.
After that, its effectiveness in easing long queues at the ramp will be evaluated. If the result is positive, the discount may be applied to other congested ramps.
Easy Pass, an electronic toll-collection system which stores cash value in a transponder, was introduced in 2009. Despite campaigns, it has yet to become mainstream among motorists, resulting in long queues at cash booths at many ramps. Possible reasons are a lack of incentives for motorists to store large sums of money in the device and fees charged by banks, which offer the most convenient way to refill it.
The authority said using Easy Pass was three times quicker. According to its statistics, cash booths clear 400 vehicles in an hour compared 1,200 by Easy Pass booths.
In addition to the discount, the authority will open a reverse lane on Chalong Rat Expressway (Ram Intra-Outer Ring Road) on Wednesday to ease traffic jams during rush hours.
Ekarin Luangwilai, chief of the testing, quality control and standard development division, said an outbound lane from the Yothin Pattana ramp to the Ram Intra expressway control centre on the expressway would be closed for a distance of six kilometres to serve as an additional lane for city inbound traffic to exit at the At Narong, Port and Rama IV ramps.
The measure will be implemented for one month on a trial basis before being reviewed for possible use in the evening.