Thailand has extended the opening period of the Mae Sot border pass in Tak to push along a planned special economic zone development in the province.
Starting yesterday, the Mae Sot pass which connects to Myanmar's Myawaddy will now be open for three hours longer every day, from 5.30am-8.30pm.
Tak provincial authorities met their Myawaddy counterparts on Wednesday to discuss the new hours.
The Myanmar authorities agreed to change the opening time at their end of the pass.
On the first day of change, more than 1,000 Myanmar workers travelled through the pass to return to their hometowns for the New Year's holiday.
In October, the government's committee on special economic zone development approved the boundaries of zones in five border areas covering 10 districts with a total area of 1.83 million rai, to be set up in 2015-16.
They are Mae Sot, Phop Phra and Mae Ramat districts in Tak; Muang, Wan Yai and Don Tan districts in Mukdahan; Sadao district in Songkhla; Aranyaprathet and Watthana Nakhon districts in Sa Kaeo; and Khlong Yai district in Trat.