South-East Asia (Page 1,386)

Users say system is costly, inconvenient

The government must consider subsidising all forms of public transportation in Bangkok to reduce travel costs for commuters in the city, a forum was told.

About 100 people, including residents, on Thursday attended a forum organised by the House committee on consumer protection, Thailand Consumers Council (TCC) and the Foundation for Consumers. It aimed to garner consumer opinion on Bangkok’s public transport and how systems can improve.

There, residents of Bangkok and its surrounding suburbs said commuting in the capital using public transportation can be inconvenient.

Bhuntin Noumjerm, Move Forward Party MP for Bangkok and spokesman of the committee, said the quality of transport services in the city is rated as poor while fares are high.

He said the government should consider subsidising all forms of transportation in the capital, not only electric rail systems, which are now seen as the main mode of transportation.

Commuters also lack good, affordable transport services from the back roads and alleyways of where they live to connect to electric train stations, he said.

He said these opinions will be compiled and forwarded to the House of Representatives for consideration during the next deliberation of bills on public transport for communities.

Aphisit Mantri, the administrator of the Rotmaethai (Thai public buses) Facebook page, said the most common difficulty faced by commuters is insufficient operating vehicles, especially at night. This can cause long waiting times, he said.

There have also been passenger complaints about confusing changes to the numbering of some bus routes, he said.

Most commuters thought it didn’t make sense why the authorities changed a numbering system that was familiar to everyone, he said.

Khongsak Chuenkrailat, an assistant secretary to the TCC’s sub-committee on transport, said it is important to ensure that fares are affordable for all.

SONGKHLA: The son of a former politician has been charged with reckless driving, causing death, and illicit drug use after he hit a group of students in tambon Samnak Kham in the Sadao district on Wednesday, killing two students and injuring 13 others.

Chanaporn Uetrakul, from Songkhla’s Provincial Education Office, on Thursday visited the students from Ban Phru Tiao School, who were being treated at Hat Yai Hospital, on behalf of Education Minister Pol Gen Permpoon Chidchob. The suspect, Wissanu Tongsai, 35, told police that a motorcycle had suddenly cut in front of his pickup, causing him to lose control and his truck hit the students.

However, Pol Col Sudjarit Petchjom, Sadao Station superintendent, said investigators did not believe his testimony and conducted a drug test, which returned a positive result for amphetamines.

Muhammad Senmuli, director of Ban Phru Tiao School, with 120 students and 12 teachers, said the school had just carried out its annual scout hike that day. Many of the students were resting at a nearby checkpoint, about 500 metres from the school, which was designated a hiking stop.

The pickup truck, driven by Mr Wissanu, who is the son of a former member of the Samnak Kham Municipal Council, crashed into the checkpoint, where at least 20 people, both students and teachers, were carrying out safety checks.

Mr Muhammad said that the truck crashed into a road barrier at a high speed, sending the vehicle over the drainage ditch before smashing into the checkpoint.

Students, Assananee Langputay and Suriya Jantra, died at the scene. Their bodies were sent to their families for a funeral.

The crash also injured 13 people, including Patcharee Intalay, a teacher who was in charge of the checkpoint. Six of the injured were reported to be in critical condition.

Eight students and teachers are receiving treatment at Hat Yai Hospital. Two others are now at Sadao Hospital, while three have been discharged.

The school will pay each deceased student’s family 10,000 baht, while those whose relatives were injured will receive 5,000 baht, said Mr Muhammad.

PRACHUAP KhIRI KHAN: A team of 49 divers from the Thai and US navies yesterday began a 19-day mission to salvage HTMS Sukhothai as part of the Cobra Gold joint military exercise.

Navy commander-in-chief Adm Adoong Pan-iam yesterday went on board the US Navy’s Ocean Valor, an offshore supply ship which serves as the mission base in the province, to inspect the operation and boost morale.

Adm Adoong said he appreciated the team’s efforts to surmount all challenges and make the mission possible.

He said the Ocean Valor sailed from Hawaii with the equipment delivered by aircraft. The equipment was then loaded onto the ship in Singapore.

“We are touched and feel grateful for the assistance from the United States,” he said.

The operation is deploying 35 Thai Navy divers and 14 US Navy divers. They are divided into groups of three: two working underwater and the other staying at the base.

Each group will spend at least one hour working on the operation, with ten minutes diving down from the surface, 40-45 minutes at the wreck site and ten minutes to return.

After that, the divers will be treated in a hyperbaric chamber for an hour.

Adm Adoong said the first mission will focus on retrieving the ship’s nameplate, followed by recovering the ship and the members of the corvette.

The demolition of hazardous ammo and weapon disarmament will follow.

The salvage mission is set to wrap up on March 19.

The navy will decide which items from the ship to keep for educational purposes during this phase, Adm Adoong added.

HTMS Sukhothai sank in the Gulf of Thailand on Dec 19, 2022. Of the 105 people on board, 76 were rescued, 24 were found dead, and five remain missing.

A sub-committee under the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security has agreed to enhance welfare benefit programmes for the elderly, babies and the disabled, marking a significant step in improving the well-being of these groups.

Social Development and Human Security Minister Varawut Silpa-archa said that under the proposed scheme, the elderly would receive a flat rate welfare payment of 1,000 baht a month, instead of the current rate which varies between 600-800 baht depending on their age.

The panel also agreed to expand a child subsidy scheme to cover all newborn babies regardless of their family’s financial status, in order to sustain support for every child’s crucial early years.

Currently, the government provides a subsidy of 600 baht per month to newborn babies from poor families until they reach the age of six years. The subsidy benefits around two million children.

Under the new scheme, a monthly subsidy of 600 baht would be provided for all newborn babies until they reach that age regardless of their family income.

The committee also agreed that child care centres should admit children as young as three months old, instead of six months old at present, to correspond with the 98-day maternity leave rule, Mr Varawut said, adding the change would ease the burden on working mothers.

The monthly subsidy for the disabled would also see an increase from 800 baht to 1,000 baht, while assistants of the disabled would be paid 100 baht per hour, instead of 50 baht per hour, under the scheme, he added.

According to Mr Varawut, the proposal will be forwarded to the ministry’s main committee considering welfare for approval.

The parents of 10 youths caught in recent motorcycle street racing in Samut Prakan have been charged with allowing their children to engage in reckless, law-breaking behaviour and fined 10,000 baht, assistant national police chief Pol Lt Gen Samran Nualma said yesterday.

Pol Lt Gen Samran revealed this after police investigators arrested 22 suspects for conducting and engaging in street racing, which blocked road traffic under the jurisdiction of Phrasamutr Chedi Police.

The case was forwarded to the court, which ordered the youths to pay a fine of 10,000 baht each and imposed a suspended three-month jail sentence.

Police took the youths to the Juvenile and Family Court, which issued an order for them to undergo a rehabilitation programme in lieu of a criminal charge so as to allow them to redeem themselves and reintegrate into society.

The court also found the parents of the youths guilty of failing to prevent their children from racing on the street and engaging in law-breaking behaviour, causing a public disturbance. The parents were ordered by the court to pay a fine of 10,000 baht under the Child Protection Act. The fine was later halved due to their confessions.

Pol Lt Gen Samran added the parents must also make sure the youths comply with the rehab programme. If the parents and their children violate the terms of the rehab, they will be subject to criminal action.

The assistant police chief said parents cannot neglect their legal duty and responsibility to their children.