NAKHON RATCHASIMA: A new motorway linking Bangkok with this northeastern province will be open for motorists by the end of this year, a Highways Department official said on Thursday.
Pholkrit Groundnok, the deputy director of the Nakhon Ratchasima Highways Office 2, said a test run of the expressway is planned for late 2020 but the exact date is yet to be set.
The 200-kilometre motorway runs between Bang Pa-in district of Ayutthaya to Nakhon Ratchasima, and construction is 96% complete. It is expected to cut travel time from the capital to the province by half, from the current four hours to two.
It will also ease heavy traffic congrestion on Mittaphap Road during long holidays as revellers return home from Bangkok.
Tolls will begin at 10 baht for cars, with the total fee calculated at 1.25 baht per kilometre.