Transport in Thailand is varied and chaotic, with no one dominant means of transport. For long distance travel, bus transport dominates. Low-speed rail travel has long been a rural long-distance transport mechanism, though plans are underway to expand services with high-speed rail lines extending to several major regions of Thailand. Road transportation is the primary form of freight transport across the country.
For short trips motorbikes are common. There are public motorcycle taxis in Bangkok, Pattaya, and other large cities. An overwhelming number of taxis can also be found in Bangkok. Since the country's first rapid rail transit line opened in 1999 in Bangkok, daily ridership on Bangkok's various transit lines has risen to over 800,000, with multiple additional lines either under construction or being proposed.
Private automobiles, whose rapid growth contributed to Bangkok's notorious traffic congestion over the past two decades, have risen in popularity, especially among tourists, expats, the upper class, and the growing middle class. A motorway network across Thailand has been gradually implemented, with motorways completed in Bangkok and most of central Thailand.
Domestic air transport, which had been dominated by a select few air carriers, saw a surge in popularity since 2010 due in large part to the expanding services of low-cost carriers such as Thai Air Asia and Nok Air.
Areas with navigable waterways often have boats or boat service, and many innovative means of transport exist such as tuk-tuk, vanpool, songthaew, and even elephants in rural areas.
Video Transport in Thailand
Rail transport
The State Railway of Thailand (SRT) operates all of Thailand's national rail lines. Bangkok Railway Station (Hua Lamphong Station) is the main terminus of all routes. Phahonyothin and ICD Lat Krabang are the main freight terminals.
As of 2017 SRT had 4,507 km (2,801 mi) of track, all of it meter gauge except the Airport Link. Nearly all is single-track (4,097 km), although some important sections around Bangkok are double (303 km or 188 mi) or triple-tracked (107 km or 66 mi) and there are plans to extend this. By comparison, Thailand has 390,000 km (242,335 miles) of highways.
The SRT has long been perceived by the public as inefficient and resistant to change. Trains are usually late, and most of its equipment is old and poorly maintained. The worst financially performing state enterprise, the SRT consistently operates at a loss despite being endowed with large amounts of property and receiving large government budgets; it reported a preliminary loss of 7.58 billion baht in 2010. Recurring government attempts at restructuring and/or privatization throughout the 2000s have always been strongly opposed by the union and have not made any progress.
There are two active rail links to adjacent countries. The line to Malaysia uses the same 1,000 mm (3 ft 3 3/8 in) gauge, as does the line to Laos across the Mekong River on the Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge. The line to Cambodia is currently disused and is being rebuilt, while the line to Myanmar is defunct (see Death Railway). A projected extension will rebuild the route and in 2011 a link was also proposed from Kanchanaburi to Port Dawei.
Rail transport in Bangkok includes long-distance services, and some daily commuter trains running from and to the outskirts of the city during the rush hour, but passenger numbers have remained low. There are also three rapid transit rail systems in the capital.
Rail rapid transit systems
Bangkok Metropolitan Region
Bangkok is served by three rail rapid transit systems:
- MRT, with two lines.
- Bangkok Skytrain or BTS, with two lines.
- Suvarnabhumi Airport Link or ARL, with one line.
Khon Kaen
In March 2016, the Thai government approved the first LRT project in Khon Kaen province, to be built by the private sector. The first phase of the project will be a 26 km North-South route. Previously, this corridor was intended to be served by a bus rapid transit route. The Office of Transport and Traffic Policy (OTP) will fund a 8-month project study for Khon Kaen University with 38 million baht. The Khon-Kaenpattanmong or Khon Kaen Think Tank, a private company, will be the main investor in the project and responsible for the operation of the network. The project is expected to begin construction in 2017 for completion within 1-2 years. The Phase 1 budget is estimated at 1.5 billion baht.
Other Provinces
Several other rapid transit systems have been proposed but have not been approved as of 2016: Chiang Mai monorail, Pattaya LRT, Phuket LRT and Hat Yai monorail.
Maps Transport in Thailand
Road transport
Thailand has 390,000 km (242,335 miles) of highways. According to the BBC Thailand has 462,133 roads and many multi-lane highways. As of 2017 Thailand has 37 million registered vehicles, 20 million of them motorbikes, and millions more that are unregistered.
Road safety
Sixty-six persons die every day on Thai roads, one every 22 minutes, seven of them children. According to the World Health Organization, Thailand's roads are the second deadliest in the world. Among public transport options, passenger vans, with a monthly average of 19.5 accidents resulting in a monthly average of 9.4 deaths, rank as the most dangerous of all public transport services involved in road accidents. Regular tour buses on fixed routes were in second place with a total of 141 accidents, resulting in 56 deaths and 1,252 injuries. Third on the list were irregular tour buses, involved in 52 accidents, resulting in 47 deaths and 576 injuries. Taxis were fourth with 77 accidents, resulting in seven deaths and 84 injuries. Ordinary buses were involved in 48 accidents with 10 deaths and 75 injuries. As of 31 October 2016, there were 156,089 legally registered public transport vehicles in Thailand, 42,202 of which were passenger vans, including 16,002 regular vans, 24,136 irregular vans, and 1,064 private vans.
The two most dangerous travel periods in Thailand are at the New Year and at Songkran. Songkran 2016 (11-17 April) saw 442 deaths and 3,656 injuries. New Year 2017's death toll for the seven day period between 29 December 2016 and 4 January 2017 was 478 compared to the previous year's record of 380. A total of 4,128 people were injured in road accidents during the period. The Centre for the Prevention and Reduction of Road Accidents said that the death toll in 2016 was the highest of the last ten years. Death toll records from road accidents for the last ten New Year periods are: 449 deaths in 2007, 401 in 2008, 357 in 2009, 347 in 2010, 358 in 2011, 321 in 2012, 365 in 2013, 366 in 2014, 341 in 2015, 380 in 2016.
Government attempts to reduce the toll of deaths and injuries have proven ineffectual. In 2011 the government declared the following ten years to be Thailand's "decade of action on road safety". It named 2012 as the year of 100 percent helmet use on motorbikes. In 2015, about 1.3 million school-age children in Thailand regularly travelled on the back of motorcycles each day but only seven percent wore helmets. In 2015 the Interior Ministry's Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation's (DDPM) Road Safety Collaboration Centre announced a target of reducing road deaths by 80 percent. DDPM's published mandate makes no mention of road safety. Road safety falls under the purview of the Ministry of Interior's DDPM. Responsibility for roads falls under the Ministry of Transport.
Public bus service
Buses are a major method of transportation for people, freight, and small parcels, and are the most popular means of long distance travel. Tour and VIP class long-distance buses tend to be luxurious, while city- and other-class buses are often very colorful with paint schemes and advertising.
There are fundamentally two types of long-distance buses in Thailand:
- those run by The Transport Company, Ltd., (TCL), the state-owned bus company. Known to Thais by the initials ??? (pronounced baw-kaw-saw), this 80-year-old company was formed by the government to ensure that citizens in even the most far-flung localities had access to the capital city, Bangkok. TCL buses are easily identified by the large golden coat of arms appliqued to each side of the bus.
- those operated by private bus companies offer hundreds of routes in various service categories (express, VIP, local, air conditioned)
Public bus service in Bangkok
In Bangkok, the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority or BMTA, is the main operator of public transit buses within the Greater Bangkok area. The Bangkok Mass Transit Authority offers bus and van routes throughout the city and its suburban provinces. Many bus routes in Bangkok are served by several private companies, sometimes duplicating those from BMTA. Examples include orange minibuses, and cream-blue buses. The buses have the BMTA symbol on them, mostly seen below the driver's side window. These often follow slightly different routings from the main big BMTA bus or do not run along the whole route.
BMTA currently operates bus routes in Bangkok and its metropolitan area namely Nonthaburi, Pathum Thani, Samut Prakan, Samut Sakhon and Nakhon Pathom.
Local buses and Bangkok city buses come in various sizes, types, and prices, from half size, full size, double length, open window, fan, and air conditioned.
Bus rapid transit system in Bangkok
The Bangkok BRT is a bus rapid transit system in Bangkok. Of five routes that were originally planned, only one line has been operating since 2010. The 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) route has twelve stations in the centre of the road that give at-grade access to the right-hand side of the buses. Both terminals connect to the Silom Line of the BTS Skytrain; at Chong Nonsi (S3) and Talat Phlu (S10). The buses used are all Sunlong SLK6125CNG buses. The flat fare is five baht.
Highway network
The Thai highway network links every part of Thailand. Most highways are in good state of repair, greatly enhancing safety and speed. The four-lane highways often have overhead concrete pedestrian crossings interspersed about every 250 meters in populated areas. There are few on and off ramps on eight-lane highways, most highways are separated by medians with breakage for U-turns, except on major roads where ramp style U-turns predominate.
A number of undivided two-lane highways have been converted into divided four-lane highways. A Bangkok - Chon Buri motorway (Route 7) now links to the new airport and Eastern Seaboard.
Motorway network
The Thai motorway network is small. Coupled with Bangkok's extensive expressway network, the motorways provide a relief from regular traffic in Bangkok. The Thai Government is planning infrastructure investment in various "megaprojects", including motorway expansion to approximately 4,500 kilometers.
Expressway network
Thailand uses the expressway term for the toll road or highway network. Most expressways are elevated with some sections at ground level. The current expressway network covers major parts of Bangkok and suburban areas. Expressways are used to avoid heavy traffic jams in Bangkok and reduce traffic time but are sometimes congested in rush hour.
Alternative transport
Other forms of road transport includes tuk-tuk, taxi, van (minibus), motorbike taxi and songthaew.
There are 4,125 public vans operating on 114 routes from Bangkok to the provinces alone. They are classed as Category 2 public transport vehicles (routes within 300 kilometres). Until 2016, most operated from a Bangkok terminus at Victory Monument. They are being moved from there to the Department of Land Transport's three Bangkok bus terminals.
Air transport
Airports
As of 2012, Thailand had 103 airports with 63 paved runways, in addition to 6 heliports. The busiest airport in the county is Bangkok's Suvarnabhumi Airport.
Major international airports
- Suvarnabhumi Airport (BKK) (New Bangkok International Airport, a major international hub)
- Don Mueang International Airport (DMK) (Old Bangkok International, now used mostly by low-cost carriers)
- Chiang Mai International Airport (CNX)
- Mae Fah Luang International Airport (CEI)
- Hat Yai International Airport (HDY)
- Phuket International Airport (HKT)
- Krabi International Airport (KBV)
- Samui International Airport (USM)
- Surat Thani International Airport (URT)
- Udon Thani International Airport (UTH)
- U-Tapao International Airport (UTP)
Airlines
The national carrier of Thailand is Thai Airways International, founded in 1959. Bangkok Airways has been operating since 1968 and now markets itself as "Asia's Boutique Airline". Low-cost carriers have become prevalent since 2003, including Thai Smile, Thai AirAsia, Thai AirAsia X, Thai Lion Air, Thai Vietjet Air and Nok Air.
Water transport
As of 2011 there were 3,999 km of principal waterways, of which 3,701 km had navigable depths of 0.9 m or more throughout the year. There are numerous minor waterways navigable by shallow-draft native craft, such as long-tailed boats.
River and canal transport
In Bangkok, the Chao Phraya River is a major transportation artery, with ferries, water taxis (the Chao Phraya Express Boat) and long-tailed boats. There are local, semi-express, and express lines for commuters, though the winding river means trips can be much farther than by bus. There is also the Khlong Saen Saeb boat service, which provides fast, inexpensive transport in central Bangkok.
Ferries
Ferry service between hundreds of islands and the mainland is available, as well as across navigable rivers, such as Chao Phraya and Mae Khong (Mekong). There are a number of international ferries.
Sea transport
In Thailand, the Gulf of Thailand and Andaman Sea is a transportation system:
- Trat - Ko Chang boat service
- Surat Thani - Ko Samui boat service
- Phuket - Phi Phi Islands boat service
- Phuket - Ao Nang boat service
- Bang Pu - Hua Hin - Pranburi boat service
- Bang Pu - Pattaya boat service
- Pattaya - Hua Hin - Pranburi boat service
Ports and harbors
- Bangkok
- Laem Ngop
- Laem Chabang near Si Racha
- Pattani
- Phuket (Patong)
- Sattahip
- Songkhla
- Ranong
- Satun
Merchant marine fleet
As of 2010 Thailand's merchant marine fleet consisted of 363 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,834,809 GRT/2,949,558 tonnes deadweight (DWT). By type this includes 31 bulk carrier, 99 cargo ships, 28 chemical tankers, 18 container ships, 36 liquified gas vessels, 1 passenger ship, 10 passenger/cargo ships, 114 petroleum tankers, 24 refrigerated cargo ships, 1 roll-on/roll-off, 1 other passenger vessel.
Pipelines
Pipelines are used for bulk transport of gas (1,889 km as of 2010), liquid petroleum (85 km) and refined products: (1,099 km).
See also
- Tuk-tuk
- Songthaew
- Motorcycle taxi
- Driving licence in Thailand
- Right- and left-hand traffic
- Vehicle registration plates of Thailand
- List of motor vehicle deaths in Thailand by year
References
External links
- Thailand Transportation Modes - Transportation modes.
- Long distance travel and public transport info - Departure stations in Bangkok and timetables.
- Online bus tickets, along with ferry, railways, and city transport timetables in Thailand
- Thai national bus company
- Railway map
- Thailand Accident Research Center (TARC) - Road & Transportation Safety.
- Driving in Thailand - Driving a car in Thailand and how to get a drivers license.
This article incorporates public domain material from the CIA World Factbook website https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/index.html.
Source of article : Wikipedia
0 Comments