Light rail plans approved for submission to ministry

PHUKET: Phuket Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada met with private and public sector officials at Phuket Provincial Hall today, where the multi-billion-baht light rail project plans were finally agreed upon.

The news comes in the wake of a push by Governor Chamroen earlier this month, when he called on the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning (OTP) in Bangkok to sort things out or dismiss the project entirely (story here).

The meeting was presided over by Project Manager and OTP secretary Sirigate Apirat.

“I am glad that the governor and committee have approved of the plan. We will now wrap things up and present the plan to the Ministry of Transport as soon as possible,” said Mr Sirigate.

“At present, the project cost has exceeded 3 billion baht, because we have to build at least three underpasses in order to prevent accidents. We also have to build a special station at the airport, so passengers can get directly on to the light rail if they choose.”

Mr Sirigate said the plan has been added to the Ministry of Transport’s 2017 Action Plan.

“I do not think it will be long until construction can finally begin,” he said.

— Chutharat Plerin