A tide of opposition from various corners of Bangkok society including architects, environmentalists, businesses, engineers, community leaders is swelling up against the Thai’s government plans to build a highway running along both sides of the Chao Phraya from Rama VII bridge to the Gulf of Thailand.
It is said piling for the road could begin as soon as July 2017.
A non-profit civic group – the River Assembly – together with The Association of Siamese Architects, is calling a press conference on April 5, inviting both foreign and Thai media to the event. There, the group will “discuss, divulge and dissect structural and environmental issues under contention with the aim of raising public awareness in what is Thailand’s foremost public good”.
The 8.4 billion-baht project, led by the government-backed Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), will see to the building of an elevated road, seven to 10 metres wide and 57km in length.
According to the statement put out by The River Assembly, environmentalists say an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) has not yet been completed but BMA “insists on ramming it through”.
Marisa Sukosol
“We hope the city will listen to warnings on the massive destruction this project will cause in all aspects – economic, tourism, transport, river flow, environment, ecological, irrigational and heritage. We want them to take a step back and re-start the process with a more cautionary approach taking into considerate the social, environmental and economic impact and including citizens and communities in the conversation throughout the process,” said Marisa Sukosol, founder of Chao Phraya River Business Community and We Love Chao Phraya Community (left).
“Does the project promote tourism or enhance access to the river as intended? We think there are other ways to enhance tourism and provide access, such as listing unique indigenous communities and the numerous historical cultural attractions as world heritage and preserving those communities. How about improving river transport systems and pier access? Why a highway?” she added.
In an earlier media report, David Robinson, director of the high-end hotels partnership Bangkok River Partners, was quoted as saying that business owners operating on the banks of the river were concerned.
“What we are worrying about is that the promenade will disconnect our businesses from the river and our ‘riverside’ hotels will not be ‘riverside’ hotels anymore, which will destroy the identity of our businesses,” Robinson was quoted as saying.
