PUBLISHED : 11 Aug 2023 at 07:20
Pattaya City is considering imposing opening hours on its beaches to curb a growing number of noisy night owls who party into the morning.
The city has received an increasing number of complaints about the nighttime visitors who like to play loud music using portable speakers while drinking alcohol and partying on Pattaya’s popular beaches, Wutthisak Roemkitchakan, the deputy city mayor, said on Thursday.
A number of these visitors continue drinking and partying and refuse to leave even when city rubbish collectors show up in the morning to clean the beaches, he said.
This results in the beaches being left littered with rubbish the following day, he said.
“The city now is thinking of imposing opening and closing hours on these beaches as this can be a solution to the problem,” he said.
Currently, the city does not have regulations on the opening and closing time of its beaches, meaning they are open around the clock, he said.
The city previously tried to step up patrols on the beaches, but it was impossible to find enough security officers to do so every night, he said.
The city’s beaches have attracted more visitors since undergoing a major expansion and renovation, he said.
Normally, these beaches do not have many visitors on weekdays, and most of them leave early in the evening, he said.
However, the number of visitors is usually much higher on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays, with many who like to drink alcohol and party late into the night, he said, adding that all city authorities can currently do is ask for their cooperation to leave.
Complaints received by the city authorities also noted loud noises made by a number of nightclubs, most of which were open-air places on beaches, he said.
In response to these complaints, he said, the Pattaya municipality and Bang Lamung district authorities inspected these night entertainment establishments and asked them to control the volume of their music.
Officials recommended a few measures, including building a proper sound-proof room for guests, he said.
More measures will be jointly implemented with local police to curb the noise pollution in Pattaya, he said.
In other news, Pipit Rattanarak, a United Thai Nation Party MP for Surat Thani, voiced his concern over shortage problems being faced on the popular islands of Koh Samui and Koh Phangan in the South.
Speaking during a House meeting on Thursday, Mr Pipit pointed to the need for all agencies to boost the handling of transport services, as well as water and electricity supplies on the islands. More measures are required as the islands are receiving a rising number of visitors, he said.