EXAT mulls toll fee cuts and new Easy Pass perks
Transport minister’s cost-of-living push drives new expressway proposals
The Expressway Authority of Thailand (EXAT) is weighing plans to reduce toll fees and roll out special campaigns to boost Easy Pass use, with some initiatives expected to start later in the year.
The proposal, reported today, September 29, aligns with Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Pipat Ratchakitprakarn’s pledge to cut living costs within four months. EXAT said it is still awaiting official confirmation, which could come after Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul’s policy announcement to Parliament.
In the meantime, EXAT is preparing incentives to encourage drivers to switch to Easy Pass and help ease congestion at toll booths. Pending board approval, the campaign could include discounts of up to 50% on special days.
Alongside the Easy Pass scheme, EXAT will also ask the Cabinet to approve its double-deck expressway project from Ngamwongwan to Rama 9. Under the plan, toll fees on the first and second expressway tiers along the stretch would be capped at 50 baht.
The 50-baht flat rate forms part of talks with private concessionaires, who would finance the second-tier expressway in return for a 22-year extension on the first and second-tier concessions.
In related EXAT news, Phuket’s long-delayed Patong Tunnel project has finally been approved, with a budget of nearly 11 billion baht. On August 26, the Cabinet backed a new investment model allowing EXAT to take direct control after private-sector bids fell through.
The tunnel will span 1.85 kilometres with elevated road sections on either side, creating a four-lane route between Kathu and Patong. Funding will be secured through borrowing or bonds backed by the Finance Ministry.
In other transport news, the Central Administrative Court has ordered the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) and Krung Thep Thanakom Co Ltd to pay 11 billion baht in unpaid operation and maintenance fees to Bangkok Mass Transit System Public Company Limited (BTSC).
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