The Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) will mobilise as many as 3,000 traffic police to keep traffic flowing in front of schools in Bangkok tomorrow, the first day of the delayed new term.
Pol Maj Gen Jirasant Kaewsaengek, deputy commissioner of the MPB in charge of city traffic management, yesterday told media he had ordered all police stations under the MPB to prepare as the school year finally gets underway.
"About 3,000 police officers will help manage traffic in front of schools," he said.
The school year begins tomorrow after it was postponed from May 16 due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Pol Maj Gen Jirasant said he has also ordered his officers to help impose measures to prevent school bus drivers from abandoning children in their vehicles.
School bus drivers were advised to give cards to student passengers and collect the cards when they get off the bus to help make sure that no students get left behind, he said.
Traffic police will also make sure that school bus operators implement disease-prevention standards such as the use of face masks, alcohol-based hand rubs and regular cabin cleaning to reduce the accumulation of germs inside the buses.
Pol Maj Gen Jirasant said traffic police may consider asking the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) to take action against school bus operators who fail to meet these requirements. The penalty includes temporary business closure.
Parents, particularly those whose children are just starting school, should allow an extra 30-45 minutes for their journeys, he added.
Meanwhile, Bangkok governor Aswin Kwanmuang said yesterday the BMA will deploy 451 officers per day from July 1 onwards to help manage traffic in front of its 437 schools in the city.
The BMA is also prohibiting street vendors from operating in front of schools to help with Covid-19 prevention.
Education Minister Nataphol Teepsuwan said around 70,000 students from neighbouring countries are still prohibited from entering Thailand due to the pandemic.
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has suggested the use of online learning to prevent the spread of Covid-19 among this group of students, said Mr Nataphol.
Prime Minister Prayut has also instructed the ministry to be fully ready for the start of the new term on July 1 and advised the ministry to work with village health volunteers and the Interior Ministry in handling the situation, he said.