Traffic in Thailand
The traffic in Thailand includes the traffic infrastructure with its types of traffic in Thailand .
Road traffic
The Thai road network covers a large part of the country. An important impetus for the development of the road network was the construction of military bases in the north-east of the country in the 1960s and 1970s for the US troops who were involved in the Vietnam War in Vietnam , Cambodia and Laos at the time . The Japanese had already opened up the northeast during the Second World War . Since then, the road network has been greatly expanded. The Bukit Bunga Ban Buketa Bridge is the newest bridge to Malaysia.
Streets
The streets can be divided into five categories:
Trok
The smallest units are paths (or troks ) that are often impassable for road traffic and are mainly found in the outskirts of cities.
Soi
Larger streets on which car traffic is possible are called soi . Even if they are wider than the trok, it is often not possible for two vehicles to pass each other. In rural areas in particular, they are not actually intended for vehicle traffic. Sois are only considered side streets of Thanons and usually do not have their own name, but are numbered, e.g. Sukhumvit Soi 16 .
Thanon
The main connecting roads are called Thanon. Within the cities, thanons have a name; the main connecting roads that exist within and between the provinces are numbered. The main connecting roads are maintained by the local authorities, which are represented at the provincial level by the provincial administrations. The quality of the roadway and the width of the road can therefore change on the border with another province. The province of Suphanburi is known nationwide for the fact that the local politicians have invested a lot of money in the road network of the province and the city.
Expressways
Expressways are wider than the thanon. They form the country's most important transport axes. As with the railway, there are four main connections, to the north, northeast, east and south. Almost all connections come together in Bangkok and are numbered. The expressways of Thailand are comparable to the " Dual Carriageway " common in Great Britain . All traffic can get onto and off the road anywhere, there are no separate entrances and exits. As a rule, they have two, but sometimes three or four lanes in each direction.
Highways
There are currently two highways in Thailand: from Bangkok to the east (Motorway 7) and a ring road (Motorway 9) around Bangkok. In Bangkok and the surrounding area there are also elevated roads, so-called expressways, for which a toll has to be paid. They lead over the road system at ground level and are comparable to our motorways in that there are separate entrances and exits and there are no traffic lights; it is also not possible to change the direction of travel.
More highways are planned and under construction.
Top speed
The official maximum speed within built-up areas is 50 km / h, outside 90 km / h. The maximum speed on the elevated roads is 80 to 120 km / h, on the motorway 120 km / h.
Public road passenger transport
Most of the public transport in Thailand is carried out by bus . Despite the long travel times, the bus routes transport most of the travelers between the provinces. Since 2004, however, they have also felt the competition from the new low-cost airlines, whose prices are barely higher than those of buses.
bus
The bus routes can be roughly divided into two groups: the state buses that run between and within the provinces and cities, and their private competition. Bangkok is the main junction for the inter-provincial lines. The buses run from three major bus stations: Morchit (Thai: สถานี ขนส่ง หมอชิต - Kampaengphet 2 Rd, towards central, north and northeast Thailand), Ekamai (Thai: สถานี ขนส่ง เอกมัย - Sukhumvit Rd, towards east) and Sai Tai (Thai : สถานี ขนส่ง สาย ใต้ ใหม่ - Boromarat Chonnani Rd., Going west and south).
State links between the provinces
The Borisat Khon Song (Thai: บริษัท ขนส่ง จำกัด , English-language name The Transport Company Ltd. , called Baw Kaw Saw for short after the Thai initials ) handle the traffic between the provinces. There is a bus stop in almost every place with a population of over 10,000, which can range from a grassy area to a large bus station. The red (without air conditioning) and blue and white (with air conditioning) buses run regularly. They usually run at fixed times and can be reserved, and since 2006 online. They are well maintained and have a sufficient seat pitch. There are intermediate stops on long journeys where meals can be obtained using the coupons included in the price. Transport Co. Ltd. has around 900 own buses, mainly with the melodious name VIP (Engl .: very important persons = very important persons) are provided. Contract partners of Transport Co. in the form of private companies operate around 8,500 buses. There are four different classes of buses which can be distinguished by the following features:
- 24 seats with three seats in width - designation VIP They are identified by a pink decorative stripe around the vehicle. There are always at least two drivers on board who take turns after about half of the journey. A stop will be made to eat. On-board toilet is standard.
- 32 seats with four seats in width - description special (Thai: พิเศษ), sometimes also VIP . They have a blue, usually also a yellow, decorative stripe. In terms of service, they are the same as the 24 seats, but have four seats in width.
- 40–44 seats - designation 1st class . They have a blue trim. Toilet is standard. There are stops at some major stations. Meals or snacks included for longer distances (from 200 km).
- 48–60 seats - designated 2nd class . They have an orange trim. They stop wherever a passenger wants to get on or off and serve almost every bus station in the province. There is a lot of competition between these buses as the drivers earn their money per passenger and they do so with a low base wage.
The VIP buses are very recommendable and comfortable, since almost only modern vehicles are used for them (chassis from the brands MAN , Scania , Mercedes-Benz and Volvo ). The prices are affordable for tourists.
All buses that travel for Transport Co. have to keep part of the vehicle in blue and have the line number sprayed on the side wall, including the vehicle number.
- Examples:
VIP bus (MAN double-decker bus built in 2006)
VIP bus (Mercedes-Benz, years of construction 1997-2002)
"1. Class "(MAN, year of construction 2006)
"2. Class "(Mercedes-Benz, years of construction 2002-2006)
Private connections between the provinces
They generally run on the same lines as the state buses and, depending on the category, must wear the same color combinations as the state buses. Your design may vary. The prices are the same for all lines, regardless of the company, as they are set by the Transport Co.
Taxis
Taxis in the real sense are available in Bangkok, Phuket, Samui, Pattaya, Khon Kaen and Chiang Mai. In most other places there are tuk tuks , songthaews ( similar to a regular service ) and / or motorcycle taxis instead . Fares must be agreed in advance, they are only given for songthaews.
railroad
Trains
The only railway company in Thailand that is also responsible for the infrastructure and maintenance is the State Railway of Thailand (short: "SRT", Thai : การ รถไฟ แห่ง ประเทศไทย ).
The rail network consists of four main lines with various branches. One main route leads to the north (to Chiang Mai ), one to the northeast (end stations in Nong Khai or Laos and Ubon Ratchathani ), one to the east (to Aranyaprathet ) and one to the south. The latter is divided at Hat Yai into an eastern route to Su-ngai Kolok and a western route to Padang Besar .
The main train station, from which almost all trains on these routes depart, is the Hua Lamphong train station in Bangkok. There are at least two trains a day in each direction. There are three classes, but most trains only run 2nd and 3rd class. Travel is cheaper in 3rd class than in the bus. Since the top speed on the narrow-gauge routes is only 60 or 80 km / h, the journey takes longer than by bus. Mostly modern diesel trains are used.
In conjunction with the SRT Red Lines , a suburban railway system currently under construction in Bangkok, the previous Hua Lamphong main train station is to be replaced by a new train station, Bang Sue Central Station , which is due to open in January 2021. At the same time, the first Red Line between Bang Sue and Rangsit is to be officially opened, with trial operation planned from October 2020.
The Suvarnabhumi Airport Rail Link is a new light rail system for public transport in Bangkok, which connects Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi Airport with downtown Bangkok, the capital of Thailand. The operator is the state railway company of Thailand, the State Railway of Thailand (SRT). The official opening took place on December 5th, 2009. On August 23, 2010, normal, chargeable passenger service began.
metro
There are two systems in the capital, Bangkok, namely the exclusively above-ground Bangkok Skytrain and the above-ground and underground Bangkok Metro . Both systems work independently of each other, but there are transfer options within and between the systems.
Local transport systems based on the Skytrain were planned in Chiang Mai and Hat Yai . These plans have since been discarded, instead a tram or light rail is to be built in Chiang Mai from 2021; a monorail is planned in Hat Yai.
Waterway transport
Waterways
In Thailand there is little use of waterways for the transport of goods, especially with the well-developed road network of central Thailand . In some places, also mainly in central Thailand, there is some passenger traffic on the water.
Important rivers
The largest river in Thailand is the Mekong , other important rivers are:
Central Thailand
- Mae Nam Chao Phraya (365 km) flows into the Gulf of Thailand
- Mae Nam Bang Pakong (294 km) flows into the Gulf of Thailand
- Mae Nam Mae Klong (140 km) flows into the Gulf of Thailand
Northeast Thailand
- Mae Nam Mun (673 km) flows into the Mekong
- Mae Nam Chi (442 km), flows into the Mun
Northern Thailand
- Mae Nam Kok (285 km) flows into the Mekong
- Mae Nam Pa Sak (513 km) flows into the Chao Phraya
- Mae Nam Nan (627 km) flows into the Chao Phraya
- Mae Nam Ping (590 km) flows into the Chao Phraya
Southern Thailand
- Mae Nam Pattani (214 km) flows into the Gulf of Thailand
Ports
Bangkok , Laem Chabang , Sattahip , Phuket and Pattani .
Pipelines
Little use is made of pipeline transport . The government has announced plans to build a network of pipelines across the Isthmus of Kra to allow tankers to dock on the Andaman Sea side and to pump oil through the pipelines to ships in the Gulf of Thailand on the other side. This should shorten the oil transport from the Middle East to Japan and South Korea by a few days. The project is called Landbrücke .
aviation
Air traffic in Thailand has risen sharply since the beginning of the 21st century due to the release of domestic flight rights to support tourism . A large number of new airlines have emerged, including a number of low-cost airlines .
Airports
The major international airport of Thailand has been Bangkok-Suvarnabhumi Airport since October 2006 . It is located southeast of the capital Bangkok in the Samut Prakan province . Previously, the former Don Mueang Airport north of Bangkok had reached its capacity limit.
Other important airports
Airlines
There are a large number of airlines in Thailand. The largest is the state-owned airline Thai Airways , which operates both international and domestic flights. Since several low-cost airlines started operating in Thailand in 2004, domestic fares have fallen dramatically. On some routes the prices are hardly higher than those of the bus companies.
Major airlines
- Thai Airways - national airline
- Bangkok Airways - largest private airline.
- Thai AirAsia - largest low-cost airline
Other private airlines
- Nok Air
- Thai Lion Air
- Siam General Aviation
- Business Air
- Orient Thai Airlines
- Phuket Airlines
- Happy Air
- Kan Air
- Solar Air
See also
Individual evidence
- ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original dated November 12, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Archived copy ( Memento of the original dated December 5, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. (in Thai)
- ↑ Red Line train trials to begin in October. In: Bangkok Post . March 19, 2020, accessed on April 23, 2020 .
- ↑ http://www.bangkokpost.com/lite/topstories/192521/airport-rail-link-begins-full-commercial-operations Bangkok Post, August 23, 2010 (in English)
- ^ Cranking up the train plan. In: Bangkok Post . July 29, 2018, accessed April 23, 2020 .
- ↑ Hat Yai looking into 'Sky Track' monorail. In: The Nation . May 10, 2018, accessed April 23, 2020 .
