More trains and more carriages for the Bangkok BTS fleet

Bangkokians will enjoy better services on the BTS Skytrain after the operator added an extra 27 trains into service, bringing the total number to 79.

BTS Group Holdings MD Surapong Laoha-anya says they’ve taken delivery of 27 new trains out of a total of 46 it currently has on order, according to Thai PBS.

He added that all the new trains will have been delivered by the end of 2020, bringing the total to 98, from the original Skytrain fleet of 35 in 1999.

Mr. Surapong says the company has also increased the number of carriages on each train from three to four to accommodate more passengers as the service has become more popular, especially during the rush hours.

“The increased number of trains will make it possible to increase the frequency of trains during the rush hours.”

At present, the time between trains in rush hours on the Sukhumvit Line from Lat Phrao to Samrong is 2.4 minutes and 3.45 minutes on the Silom Line. He admitted there is a restriction on the Silom Line due to the bottleneck at Taksin station next to the Chao Phraya, where trains are required to share a single section of track.

“The company is in the process of getting permission from the Rural Highway Department and the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment to expand the section to dual tracks.”

SOURCE: Thai PBS World