The Department of Rural Roads (DRR) officially opened the inbound section of the Maha Sawat Canal Bridge on Ratchaphruek Road in Nonthaburi yesterday to accommodate a surge in traffic associated with the start of the new school term.
The outbound side is scheduled to open on June 20, allowing the bridge to operate at full capacity and significantly easing long-standing congestion in the area.
Phongkawin Jungrungreangkit, adviser to the transport minister, said yesterday that the bridge, constructed by the DRR, addresses severe congestion at a major bottleneck on Ratchaphruek Road.
The area experiences peak-hour traffic of up to 120,000 vehicles per day. The new bridge is expected to increase road capacity, reduce accidents, and improve travel efficiency -- enhancing the quality of life for commuters in the western Bangkok metropolitan area.
The Maha Sawat Canal Bridge connects Maha Sawat subdistrict in Bang Kruai, Nonthaburi, with Taling Chan district in Bangkok. Construction began in 2022 and was completed ahead of the original June 2025 deadline.
According to Montree Dechasakulsom, director-general of the DRR, the project cost 1.18 billion baht and spans 3.9 kilometres. It features an 8.5m-wide, two-lane steel bridge (two lanes in each direction) and includes modern drainage and lighting systems. The inbound side measures 2.1km while the outbound side is 1.9km.
The need for the bridge emerged due to rapid urbanisation and land use expansion in western Nonthaburi along the Thonburi side of the Chao Phraya River.
The existing infrastructure could no longer accommodate the increasing volume of vehicles, leading to traffic delays and frequent accidents.
The DRR designed the bridge to fit within the existing right-of-way, overcoming space limitations that prevented traditional road expansion.
The new structure aims to boost transportation efficiency and ensure safer, faster travel for daily commuters.