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Ministry Wants Phuket Road, Tram Master Plan In A Month

11 Feb, 2021

Transport Ministry permanent secretary Chayathon Promsorn said he has ordered the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning to create a master transport plan for Phuket within a month.

He made the announcement after a meeting on Wednesday to discuss the progress of a mass transit system linking Phuket International Airport with Ha Yaek Chalong.

He also asked the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA) to accelerate implementation of the transport project.

The goal is to achieve “efficient network integration” that does not cause traffic jams in Phuket.

The ministry plans to develop a host of projects, especially the Kathu-Patong expressway by the Expressway Authority of Thailand (Exat) and the Mueang Mai-Koh Kaew and Koh Kaew-Kathu highways by the Department of Highways (DOH).

 

 

“Road construction projects come first,” he said. “The construction of road projects by Exat and the DOH must be expedited first because the trams will make use of the constructed areas of the road. If road development is not completed first, along with the tram construction, it will cause heavy traffic problems in Phuket. There is no bypass for the public,” Chayathon said.

 

He requested both the MRTA and Exat, the agencies involved in developing the transport network in Phuket, to create an action plan and set up a suitable joint construction framework in a month.

A Transport Ministry source said the policy to push the road construction project first may cause the MRTA tram project to be delayed since it would have to wait for the road network construction project to proceed first.

 

Bidding hasn’t started yet for the projects.

 

 

The Nation

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