Transport News
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Boeing’s 737 MAX takes its next step to re-enter commercial service
The US Federal Aviation Administration has approved the next step for the beleaguered Boeing 737 MAX to resume commercial flights after a 20 month grounding. But the factors that partly contributed to the plane’s grounding have not been addressed leaving the plane reliant on software to control its flying characteristics. The plane, a fourth generation makeover of 50 year old…
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Taxi drivers in Bangkok can now charge “handling fees” for luggage
Bangkok taxis can now start charging passengers extra for large luggage items with handling fees ranging from 20 to 100 baht per item. Under the new regulations, taxi drivers are required to tell passengers about the extra costs before the ride. Bags larger than 26 inches will be 20 baht and items larger than 50 inches will be no more…
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Good samaritans help motorbike stuck in Pattaya construction pit
A 30 year old man has good samaritans to thank after they helped pull his motorbike out of a construction pit in Pattaya. The motorbike became stuck in the pit on South Pattaya Road at about 3:30am yesterday morning. The man claims he didn’t see the pit, despite multiple signs, lights, and barriers. The area under construction was blocked with…
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Qatar Airways set to return to Phuket
Qatar Airways is set to return to Phuket by offering limited flights after the coronavirus pandemic halted services to the resort island. in March this year The middle eastern airline says it is planning a weekly flight between Doha and Phuket from December 4 and is seeking permission from Thai authorities to increase the number of flights between the 2…
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Qatar Airways to offer biweekly flights from Phuket to Doha
Things are starting to take off at the Phuket International Airport. Qatar Airways will resume bi-weekly flights from Phuket to Doha starting on December 4. The move is a major step forward after a halt of international travel to the island due to Covid-19 lockdown measures. Last week, an empty Emirates Airlines flight landed in Phuket. Although it wasn’t carrying…
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The Phuket ‘light rail’ may end up being an electric bus instead
The Phuket mass rapid transport system, aka. Phuket Light Rail and Phuket Tram, is receiving more attention as the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand mull more changes to the design. The initial route, which would run from the Phuket Airport, follow the main north/south artery, Thepkasattri Road, then through Phuket Town and on to Chalong circle, has a projected…
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Thai Airways to auction off 34 used passenger aircrafts
Anyone want to buy an airplane? In the midst of tackling bankruptcy, Thai Airways is auctioning off 34 old passenger aircrafts. The aircrafts are around 12 to nearly 30 years old and are sold on an “as-is, where is” condition. The airline has been strapped for cash. As part of a debt rehabilitation plan, nearly 5,000 employees – a fourth…
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Empty Emirates plane lands in Phuket, first international flight since lockdown
An empty Emirates Airlines plane landed at the Phuket International Airport, the first international arrival at the airport since the Covid-19 lockdown was put in place 7 months ago. While no passengers were onboard the aircraft, flight EK376 was welcomed by a “water cannon salute” and landed while PM Prayut Chan-o-cha was visiting the airport, according to a Facebook post…
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Bangkok Airways offers unlimited flights through new membership program
Bangkok Airways is now offering unlimited domestic flights through a new membership program. The airline launched the new Elite Card for 100,000 baht, allowing unlimited travel throughout 2021. Those interested can apply for the card from now until November 30. Tickets for flights from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021 can be booked starting on December 16. Air Asia…
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Cruise ships and yachts to dock in Thailand, visitors to enter on Special Tourist Visa
Cruise ships and yachts will be allowed to dock in Thailand and visitors will be allowed disembark under the Special Tourist Visa. The new measure hasn’t been made official yet, but it will go into effect 30 days after it’s published in the Royal Gazette. The Cabinet approved the new guidelines yesterday which allows captains, crew and passengers travelling from…
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Expert says all rail crossings should be upgraded after fatal train-bus collision
After the fatal freight train-charter bus collision earlier this month, authorities are looking into ways to make the rail crossings safer and to prevent potentially deadly incidents from happening in the future. An expert in rail engineering says all rail crossings need to upgraded, urgently, while unofficial or illegal crossings should either be permanently closed off or upgraded with the proper…
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Foreign yachts allowed to dock in Thailand, tourists to quarantine onboard
Overseas yachts are now allowed to dock in Thailand, but foreign tourists and crew members still need to adhere to strict health measures, according to the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. Tourists will need to quarantine onboard the yacht for 14 days and be tested for Covid-19 tests 3 times before entering Thailand, according to the CCSA spokesperson Taweesilp Visanuyothin.…
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International travel slow to take off, Covid-19 restrictions evolving
While Thailand is working on safely, and slowly, reopening its borders to foreign tourists after a 7 month border closure, other countries are also adapting to new, pandemic-induced, travel measures and restrictions. Now some are slowly lifting restrictions and resuming flights, while some remain grounded. What’s happening in your part of the world? In all cases, check your local travel…
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Koh Samui tourism operators want cheaper flights to lure tourists
Koh Samui needs more visitors, from anywhere. A number of hotels on the island, one of Thailand’s popular tourist destinations hit by the pandemic-induced travel bans, are certified for alternative local state quarantine, or ALSQ, and now tourism officials are looking to lure travellers in with cheaper flights. Getting the prices lower could be difficult. President of the Tourism Association…
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UPDATE: Broken railway crossing signal contributed to fatal bus-train collision east of Bangkok
A broken crossing signal led to the fatal collision yesterday, where a freight train smashed into a charter bus, killing 18 bus passengers and injuring another 44. Officials from the department as well as the State Railway of Thailand governor visited the site after the accident and say the broken crossing signal “contributed to the fatal incident”. The bus was…
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Thailand’s land bridge plan still floating
Deputy government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul says the government is still mulling the idea of a land bridge between the southern provinces of Ranong and Chumphon. The project’s aim would be to improve the infrastructure in the region by connecting the Gulf of Thailand directly with the Andaman Sea, “thereby making the Kingdom more competitive”. In a report in the Bangkok…
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New Bangkok BTS line to start running in December
A new Bangkok public transport monorail extension, the BTS Gold Line, is expected to start running before the end of the year. The scheduled run is the first phase of the BTS Gold Line to be rolled out along the Chao Phraya River in the Bang Phlad district. The new 1.72 kilometre BTS line will link Krung Thon Buriskytrain station…
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UPDATE: 18 dead, 44 injured, bus collides with train in Chachoengsao
A bus has collided with a train next to Khlong Kwaeng Klan railway station, killing 18 passengers and injuring 44. The incident happened just after 8am this morning. Earlier it was reported in Thai PBS World that 20 people had died. The incident in Chachoengsao province, about 50 kilometres east of Bangkok, occurred as passengers were on their way to…
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Pattaya officials to examine plans for light rail network
The coordinator of a feasibility study into a light railway project for Pattaya says findings will shortly be submitted to officials for consideration. It’s one of those many infrastructure projects that has been long discussed with multiple ‘feasibility studies’ conducted. At this stage, it’s understood a monorail, rather than trams, is being suggested as the best option for Pattaya. Siraphop…
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Thailand to cut down on uninsured vehicles on the road
Thailand’s Land Transport officials are trying to cut down on the number of vehicles on the road driving without compulsory car or motorbike insurance. Those without valid insurance will not be able to renew their vehicle registration. To track insurance, an interactive data base is being set up by the Office of Insurance Commission, and the Department of Land Transport. The…
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Bangkok SkyTrain offers free rides on Car Free Day for bike riders
Peddle your way to a free BTS train ride on Tuesday. Bangkok’s SkyTrain (BTS) is offering free rides to those who bring along a bicycle to celebrate Bangkok Car Free Day on September 22. The Bangkok Mass Transit System CEO says the cyclists can carry their bicycles into the Silom and Sukhumvit lines free of charge during the time periods of…
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Bankruptcy court finds Thai Airways sunk by graft and mismanagement
“Thaworn also claims to have evidence of bribes of at least 5%, or about 2.6 billion baht, to politicians, officials and company executives…” Troubled national flag carrier Thai Airways, which has filed for bankruptcy protection and business rehabilitation, was “sunk by mismanagement and graft”, according to a court investigation. Thaworn Senneam of the Democrats revealed that the investigation focused on…
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New lease on life for 7 of Thailand’s budget airlines
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha today threw a lifeline to 7 of Thailands’ domestic low-cost airlines, beginning with the injection of 24 billion baht in soft loans for the struggling aviation sector, battered by the Covid-19 pandemic. Representatives of Thai Air Asia, its long haul division Thai Air Asia X, Thai Smile, Thai Lion Air, Thai Viet Jet, Bangkok Airways and Nok…
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Phuket Rail goes through its first public hearing, with a few modifications
Phuket’s light rail/tram, and much-discussed, public transport system has had a round of public consultations to take the project to the next level. At one stage the route started in Phang Nga province but now it’s had a ‘haircut’ and will only run from the Phuket International Airport to Chalong Circle, a distance of some 42 kilometres. Some of the…
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80% of Pattayans support monorail project
Authorities at a public hearing in Pattaya heard that 80% of local residents support plans to build a monorail to ease the resort town’s appalling traffic and transport problems. The proposed monorail would meet the proposed High Speed train at the station to the east of Sukhumvit Road, then travel along the motorway and along Sukhumvit before heading toward the…
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Transport Department clarifies “big bike” licencing rule
The Deparment of Land Transport yesterday clarified the recently announced licencing requirement for drivers of “big bikes” ie larger more powerful motorcycles than the 110-150cc scooters normally seen on Thai streets. The definition will be bikes with engines of 400CC and up, according to the department’s deputy director-general. Applicants for these licenses will have to be trained and tested separately…
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Thai Airways procurement probe points to corruption
“Corruption has definitely occurred.” An investigation by the Transport Ministry has revealed that some employees of Thai Airways got quite rich from a major plane procurement deal struck in 2003-2004. Deputy Transport Minister Thaworn Senneam said yesterday that the conclusion came after a team led by a former commissioner of the Metropolitan Police Bureau completed its investigation. Thaworn was assigned…
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“Free-flow” tech to eliminate Bangkok’s toll gate barriers
Bangkok’s Mass Rapid Transit Authority is studying the implementation of Multi-Lane Free-Flow technology that will eliminate the need for gates at tollbooths and enable traffic to flow faster without the need to slow down or stop to pay toll fees. According to MRTA governor Surachet Laophulsuk: “The study is being carried out in parallel with the Department of Highways’ Free…
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Thai Airways loses 28 billion baht in the first half of the year
Embattled, bankrupt Thai Airways suffered about 28 billion baht in losses for the first 6 months of this year, mainly attributable to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has seriously impacted its operations and crushed global travel, grounding fleets and shuttering many airlines altogether. The airline’s acting president said today that the pandemic has led to many countries, including Thailand, closing their…
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Nok Air blames some of its losses on MPs who don’t show up for flights
Part of Nok Air’s current losses are being blamed on privileged MPs, who receive free flights on the budget carrier but don’t turn up for their flights. Somboon Uthaiwiankul, secretary for the government’s House Speaker, says the issue was brought up by executives of the airline during a meeting with the House Speaker, Chuan Leekpai. The executives told him last…
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