A 16.4-kilometre-long stretch of Highway 340 linking Bangkok to Suphan Buri faces closures over the next three years for repair work, starting Thursday.
The work is necessary because the road has been in use for 34 years and was damaged by two major floods in 2006 and 2011, leading to severe structural deterioration, said Social Development and Human Security Minister Varawut Silpa-archa, whose political stronghold is in Suphan Buri.
The Chartthaipattana Party leader said the closure will affect motorists as the highway is a busy artery which people use to travel between Bangkok and Suphan Buri.
He said one section of the highway will be closed at a time, with the first section being the Bangkok-bound side from the Pla Yai PTT gas station in Suphan Buri's Muang district to the Sali interchange in the province's Bang Pla Ma district.
During this period, vehicles will be diverted to the opposite lanes bound for Suphan Buri in a contraflow system. After that, repairs will begin on the Suphan Buri-bound side.
Department of Highways director-general Apirat Chaiwongnoi estimates the cost of the project will be about 1.37 billion baht and will be completed within three years.
The project will also widen the highway from four lanes to six, and include construction of three reinforced concrete bridges, totalling nearly 700 metres in length. Improved lighting and traffic signs will also be installed along the road to enhance safety. The department also suggested motorists take alternative routes to minimise travel delays.