Discovering the City
46
Durin
g th
e pa
st y
ears
, Ban
gkok
has
be
com
e on
e of
the
mai
n cl
uste
rs o
f th
e so
ftwar
e de
velo
pmen
t com
mun
ity
in T
haila
nd. S
pear
head
ed b
y So
ftwar
e Pa
rk, m
ore
and
mor
e so
ftwar
e co
mpa
nies
, lar
ge a
nd s
mal
l, be
gan
to
look
at B
angk
ok a
s an
idea
l pla
ce to
se
t up
thei
r ope
ratio
ns. O
ne e
xam
ple
is R
eute
rs S
oftw
are,
an
early
ent
rant
lo
cate
d at
a re
gion
al s
oftw
are
deve
lopm
ent c
ente
r in
Thai
land
, w
hich
is n
ow th
e la
rges
t suc
h ce
nter
. W
ith a
wid
e se
lect
ion
of g
radu
ates
an
d sk
illed
pro
fess
iona
ls, R
eute
rs
Thai
land
cen
ter w
as th
e fi r
st to
atta
in
CMM
I (Ca
pabi
lity
Mat
urity
Mod
el
Inte
grat
ion)
Lev
el 5
cer
tifi c
atio
n,
an in
tern
atio
nally
acc
epte
d st
anda
rd
for s
oftw
are
outs
ourc
ing
orga
niza
tions
.
Ther
e ar
e m
any i
nves
tmen
t opp
ortu
nitie
s in
the
softw
are
sect
or, p
artic
ular
ly
in m
ultim
edia
, bus
ines
s so
lutio
ns,
anim
atio
n an
d te
leco
m s
oftw
are
for
mob
ile p
hone
s.
Due
to th
e gr
owin
g de
man
d fo
r pr
ogra
mm
ers
mor
e un
iver
sitie
s ha
ve a
dded
sof
twar
e pr
ogra
mm
ing
cour
ses
to th
eir s
ylla
bus.
Softw
are
Park
Bui
ldin
g
Elec
trica
l and
Ele
ctro
nics
Indu
strie
s
The
King
dom
has
bec
ome
the
larg
est
prod
uctio
n ba
se fo
r Jap
anes
e w
hite
go
ods
in S
outh
east
Asi
a. W
ith m
any
inte
rnat
iona
l man
ufac
ture
rs h
avin
g pr
oduc
tion
faci
litie
s in
Tha
iland
, el
ectri
cal a
nd e
lect
roni
c pr
oduc
ts
acco
unt f
or o
ne-th
ird o
f the
cou
ntry
’s ex
port
reve
nue,
and
this
sec
tor
empl
oys
over
600
,000
peo
ple.
The
Thai
Gov
ernm
ent h
as s
et th
e ta
rget
for T
haila
nd to
bec
ome
the
regi
onal
ele
ctric
al a
nd e
lect
roni
cs
hub
with
in 5
yea
rs. I
n fa
ct, t
he c
ount
ry
alre
ady
dom
inat
es in
key
indu
stry
ni
ches
. For
inst
ance
, in
2005
Tha
iland
ov
erto
ok S
inga
pore
to b
ecom
e th
e w
orld
’s #1
man
ufac
ture
r and
exp
orte
r of
har
d di
sk d
rives
.
Alth
ough
mos
t of t
he e
lect
rical
and
el
ectro
nic
man
ufac
turin
g is
not
lo
cate
d in
Ban
gkok
, the
re e
xist
vas
t op
portu
nitie
s fo
r usi
ng B
angk
ok a
s th
e co
untry
’s ce
nter
of r
esea
rch,
des
ign
and
test
ing
for t
his
indu
stry
, suc
h as
pr
otot
ype
desi
gn a
nd p
rodu
ctio
n.
Softw
are
Dev
elop
men
t: Th
aila
nd’s
softw
are
indu
stry
has
dev
elop
ed
rapi
dly
and
is p
rese
ntly
abl
e to
offe
r a
varie
ty o
f ser
vice
s, in
clud
ing
prog
ram
min
g/co
ding
, dat
a en
try,
desi
gn a
nd d
evel
opm
ent,
docu
men
t co
nver
sion
, geo
grap
hic
info
rmat
ion
serv
ices
, lab
or-in
tens
ive
serv
ices
, an
d es
peci
ally
web
and
sof
twar
e de
velo
pmen
t are
now
via
ble
and
cost
-effe
ctiv
e in
Tha
iland
.
Discovering the City
47
Heal
th S
ervi
ce: B
angk
ok is
reco
gnize
d gl
obal
ly a
s a
fi rst
cla
ss h
ealth
car
e ce
nter
with
faci
litie
s th
at m
eet
inte
rnat
iona
l sta
ndar
ds. T
he p
rivat
e ho
spita
l mar
ket i
n Th
aila
nd p
rovi
des
high
sta
ndar
d m
edic
al s
ervi
ces
and
is
grow
ing
year
by
year
. Gro
wth
is b
ased
bo
th o
n do
mes
tic a
nd fo
reig
n pa
tient
s.
The
com
bina
tion
of lo
w-c
ost
high
-qua
lity
med
ical
car
e is
one
of t
he
mai
n re
ason
s w
hy fo
reig
ners
cho
ose
Thai
land
whe
n se
ekin
g m
edic
al
atte
ntio
n. T
he c
ost o
f med
ical
se
rvic
es in
Ban
gkok
is ty
pica
lly 5
0 pe
rcen
t or m
ore
belo
w E
urop
ean
pric
es, a
nd e
ven
low
er w
hen
com
pare
d w
ith N
orth
Am
eric
an
med
ical
cos
ts. T
reat
men
ts a
vaila
ble
in T
haila
nd in
clud
e he
art s
urge
ry,
cosm
etic
sur
gery
, las
er e
ye s
urge
ry
and
com
plex
den
tal p
roce
dure
s.
The
lead
ing
hosp
itals
in B
angk
ok a
re
usin
g th
e m
ost a
dvan
ced
back
offi
ce
IT in
frast
ruct
ure,
suc
h as
enh
ance
d da
taba
se m
anag
emen
t tha
t is
cust
omer
focu
sed,
put
ting
info
rmat
ion
such
as
patie
nt re
cord
s, a
ppoi
ntm
ent
sche
dulin
g, d
iagn
ostic
imag
es, b
illin
g an
d ph
arm
acy
labe
ls o
nlin
e an
d in
a
sing
le d
atab
ase.
In a
dditi
on, t
here
is a
var
iety
of
oppo
rtuni
ties
for t
ouris
ts s
eeki
ng
wel
lnes
s an
d he
alth
thro
ugh
mor
e “a
ltern
ativ
e” o
r “ho
listic
” m
etho
ds.
Thai
land
has
trad
ition
ally
bee
n a
cent
er o
f anc
ient
hea
ling,
bas
ed
on h
erba
l med
icin
e an
d ho
listic
tre
atm
ents
. Hol
istic
hea
ling
tech
niqu
es h
ave
beco
me
a po
pula
r al
tern
ativ
e to
con
vent
iona
l med
ical
tre
atm
ents
.
Envi
ronm
enta
l Was
te
Man
agem
ent:
Ther
e is
a ra
nge
of
oppo
rtuni
ties
that
exi
st
with
in a
reas
suc
h as
co
mpo
stin
g re
cycl
ing,
sor
ting
and
chem
ical
trea
tmen
t tec
hnol
ogy,
and
so
lid w
aste
dis
posa
l. Fu
rther
mor
e,
tech
nolo
gy a
nd k
now
-how
rega
rdin
g en
ergy
sol
utio
ns, s
ortin
g eq
uipm
ent,
recy
clin
g, re
cycl
ing
tech
nolo
gy
and
rene
wab
le e
nerg
y te
chno
logy
co
uld
be a
reas
of i
nter
est f
or fo
reig
n co
mpa
nies
.
Inve
stm
ent o
ppor
tuni
ties
exis
t for
tu
rnin
g Ba
ngko
k’s e
xten
sive
was
te
disp
osal
into
ele
ctric
ity g
ener
atio
n an
d fe
rtiliz
ers.
Aut
omot
ive
The
coun
try h
as e
arne
d in
tern
atio
nal
reco
gniti
on a
s th
e “D
etro
it of
Asi
a”
and
is th
e la
rges
t pro
duce
r of c
ars
in
ASEA
N, w
ith a
n an
nual
pro
duct
ion
of
1.2
mill
ion
units
, and
is a
lso
the
wor
ld’s
seco
nd la
rges
t pro
duce
r and
exp
orte
r of
pic
k-up
truc
ks. J
apan
ese,
Am
eric
an
and
Germ
an o
wne
d au
tom
obile
fa
ctor
ies
have
pro
duce
d a
larg
e nu
mbe
r of s
ub-s
uppl
iers
.
Doub
le d
igit
expo
rt gr
owth
ove
r the
pa
st fe
w y
ears
illu
stra
tes
Thai
land
’s ris
ing
sign
ifi ca
nce
as a
regi
onal
au
tom
otiv
e hu
b. T
haila
nd c
urre
ntly
ex
ports
40
perc
ent o
f its
aut
omob
ile
prod
uctio
n. T
hese
exp
ort fi
gur
es a
re
expe
cted
to in
crea
se s
igni
fi can
tly d
ue
to fr
ee tr
ade
agre
emen
ts w
ith s
ome
of
its m
ajor
trad
ing
partn
ers:
Aus
tralia
, N
ew Z
eala
nd, C
hina
and
Indi
a.
The
exte
nsiv
e su
ppor
ting
netw
ork
of a
uto
parts
man
ufac
ture
rs is
a
cruc
ial a
dvan
tage
con
tribu
ting
to
the
indu
stry
’s st
reng
th w
hile
giv
ing
Thai
land
an
edge
ove
r com
petit
ors.
Durin
g 19
98-2
005
the
dom
estic
au
tom
obile
mar
ket g
rew
at a
n av
erag
e of
35
perc
ent p
er a
nnum
. Thi
s gr
owth
is
exp
ecte
d to
con
tinue
and
Ban
gkok
, w
hich
has
the
high
est p
urch
asin
g po
wer
, will
con
tinue
to a
bsor
b m
ost
of it
. Mor
eove
r, w
ith th
e la
rge
supp
ly
of q
ualifi
ed
man
pow
er B
angk
ok w
ill
serv
e as
the
indu
stry
’s ce
nter
for
tech
nica
l ser
vice
s an
d gl
obal
sou
rcin
g.
Sour
ce: T
he T
hai A
utom
otiv
e In
dust
ry A
ssoc
iatio
n
Discovering the City
48
Discovering the City
49
Agr
o-in
dust
ry:
The
“Kitc
hen
of th
e W
orld
”
Thai
land
is o
ne o
f the
wor
ld’s
fi ve
net
food
exp
orte
rs. I
t is
the
wor
ld’s
larg
est
expo
rter o
f ric
e, s
ugar
, cas
sava
, ca
nned
tuna
& p
inea
pple
, and
froz
en
chic
ken
& s
eafo
od. G
iven
the
grow
ing
com
petit
ion
in th
e w
orld
mar
ket,
Thai
land
nee
ds to
mov
e up
the
valu
e ch
ain
and
conc
entra
te o
n pr
oduc
ts
with
hig
her v
alue
add
ed. M
oreo
ver,
inte
rnat
iona
l mar
kets
are
bec
omin
g m
ore
dem
andi
ng a
s re
gard
s fo
od
safe
ty a
nd s
tand
ards
. Giv
en m
ore
soph
istic
ated
infra
stru
ctur
e, B
angk
ok
will
con
tinue
to p
lay
an im
porta
nt ro
le
as a
cen
ter f
or fo
od s
afet
y, in
spec
tion,
di
strib
utio
n, a
nd b
io-te
ch re
sear
ch.
Discovering the City
50
Wo
rk
Fo
rc
e
Educ
ated
Wor
kfor
ce
The
size
of t
he w
ork
forc
e no
w e
xcee
ds 3
4.1
mill
ion,
with
the
maj
ority
of t
he
wor
kfor
ce u
nder
30
year
s of
age
. Eac
h ye
ar a
bout
800
,000
peo
ple
join
this
fo
rce,
with
a li
tera
cy ra
te a
bove
90
perc
ent.
It ha
s a
suffi
cien
t qua
lifi e
d w
ork
forc
e, w
ith 1
7,00
0 ne
w e
ngin
eerin
g gr
adua
tes
and
200,
000
tech
nici
an g
radu
ates
eac
h ye
ar.
The
Thai
Gov
ernm
ent i
s in
stitu
ting
refo
rms
aim
ed to
ens
ure
a sk
illed
and
ed
ucat
ed w
orkf
orce
. To
begi
n w
ith, w
e ar
e:
ú I
ntro
duci
ng c
ompr
ehen
sive
edu
catio
n re
form
s to
ens
ure
that
all
stu
dent
s co
mpl
ete
a m
inim
um o
f 12
year
s of
sch
oolin
g an
d th
at b
y 20
08
half
of a
ll hi
gh s
choo
l stu
dent
s w
ill a
ttend
uni
vers
ity.
úEn
cour
agin
g Th
ai u
nive
rsiti
es to
exp
and
inte
rnat
iona
lly-li
nked
deg
ree
prog
ram
s to
cov
er a
wid
er ra
nge
of d
isci
plin
es.
200
150
100 50 0
Wag
e Ra
te in
Ban
gkok
and
Vic
inity
(Uni
t: Ba
ht/d
ay)
Jul
. 199
5 O
ct. 1
996
Jan.
199
8 Ja
n. 2
001
Jan.
200
2 Ja
n. 2
003
Aug
. 200
3 N
ov. 2
003
Jan.
200
5 Ja
n. 2
006
145
157
162
165
165
169
169
170
175
184
Sour
ce: D
epar
tmen
t of L
obou
r Pro
tect
ion
and
Wel
fare
, Min
istry
of L
abou
r
APP
ROXI
MAT
E M
ON
THLY
SA
LARI
ES F
OR
SELE
CTED
PO
SITI
ON
S
Posi
tion
B
aht
IT m
anag
er
90,
000
- 150
,000
Plan
t man
ager
73,0
00
Hum
an re
sour
ces
dire
ctor
71,0
00
Web
mas
ter
45
,000
- 60
,000
Net
wor
k ad
min
istra
tor
45
,000
- 55
,000
Offi c
e m
anag
er
48
,000
Exec
utiv
e se
cret
ary
32
,000
Sale
s / m
arke
ting
staf
f
24,0
00
Gene
ral o
ffi ce
sta
ff
15,0
00
Sour
ce: N
atio
nal S
tatis
tic O
ffi ce
Sour
ce: N
atio
nal S
tatis
tic O
ffi ce
Sour
ce :
Boar
d of
Inve
stm
ent (
BOI)
Discovering the City
51
Ext
ensi
ve
Tr
ansp
or
tati
on
Net
wo
rk
s Ava
ilab
ilit
y
Thai
land
has
one
of t
he m
ost d
evel
oped
and
ext
ensi
ve tr
ansp
orta
tion
netw
orks
in
the
regi
on. T
he c
ount
ry is
the
size
of F
ranc
e an
d ne
eds
an e
xten
sive
tra
nspo
rtatio
n ne
twor
k to
sup
port
its la
rge
dom
estic
mar
ket a
nd u
se a
s a
base
for s
ervi
cing
Indo
-Chi
na a
nd A
SEAN
.
Bang
kok
is id
eally
loca
ted
as T
haila
nd’s
trans
porta
tion
hub,
con
nect
ing
with
th
e re
st o
f the
cou
ntry
by
land
, air,
and
sea
, and
tele
com
mun
icat
ion
syst
ems.
Th
e ci
ty’s
loca
l tra
nspo
rtatio
n sy
stem
pro
vide
s da
ily s
ervi
ce fo
r the
peo
ple
of
Bang
kok,
com
mut
ers
from
the
subu
rbs,
and
trav
eler
s fro
m th
e re
st o
f the
co
untry
and
aro
und
the
wor
ld. B
angk
ok is
a k
alei
dosc
ope
of m
ovin
g ca
rs,
buse
s, tr
ains
, tuk
-tuks
(thr
ee w
heel
taxi
s), b
oats
, Sky
Tra
ins
and
subw
ays.
Bang
kok
has
an e
xten
sive
net
wor
k of
exp
ress
way
s, h
ighw
ays,
wat
erw
ays,
br
idge
s, a
nd tu
nnel
s to
ens
ure
the
smoo
th fl
ow o
f tra
nspo
rtatio
n. T
he B
MA,
al
ong
with
the
Bang
kok
Met
ropo
litan
Tra
nspo
rt Au
thor
ity, t
he P
olic
e De
partm
ent,
and
the
Min
istry
of T
rans
port
is c
onst
antly
pro
vidi
ng s
ervi
ce
to c
omm
uter
s an
d m
anag
ing
the
traffi
c to
ens
ure
the
city
’s tra
nspo
rtatio
n de
man
ds a
re m
et a
nd ru
n sm
ooth
ly.
The
BMA
annu
ally
ove
rsee
s ne
w c
onst
ruct
ion
of b
ridge
s, w
heth
er th
ey a
re
over
pass
es a
cros
s bu
sy in
ters
ectio
ns o
r new
ped
estri
an b
ridge
s to
pro
vide
the
peop
le o
f Ban
gkok
with
a s
afe
way
to c
ross
the
stre
et.
Bang
kok’s
airp
ort a
nd p
orts
are
am
ong
of th
e bu
sies
t in
the
regi
on. T
he n
ew
Suva
rnab
hum
i Airp
ort w
ill fu
rther
pos
ition
Ban
gkok
as
the
regi
on’s
avia
tion
hub.
Discovering the City
52Su
varn
abhu
mi A
irpor
t
Discovering the City
53
Air
port
s
Thai
land
has
dev
elop
ed a
n ex
tens
ive
air t
rans
port
netw
ork
that
enc
ompa
sses
30 c
omm
erci
al a
irpor
ts, m
eani
ng th
at
all T
haila
nd’s
regi
ons
are
abou
t an
hour
’s fl i
ght f
rom
Ban
gkok
.
In a
dditi
on to
Don
Mua
ng A
irpor
t in
Bang
kok,
whi
ch c
urre
ntly
han
dles
in
exce
ss o
f 215
,000
fl ig
hts,
823
,000
tons
of
car
go a
nd m
ore
than
33
mill
ion
pass
enge
rs p
er y
ear,
Thai
land
has
in
tern
atio
nal a
irpor
ts in
Phu
ket,
Chia
ng
Mai
, Hat
Yai
, Chi
ang
Rai a
nd K
o Sa
mui
.
Suva
rnab
hum
i Air
port
The
new
inte
rnat
iona
l Suv
arna
bhum
i Ai
rpor
t was
bes
tow
ed b
y Hi
s M
ajes
ty
the
King
to h
elp
boos
t Tha
iland
econ
omic
, soc
ial,
com
mun
icat
ion
and
tour
ism
dev
elop
men
t. Si
tuat
ed a
bout
25
kilo
met
ers
east
of B
angk
ok, i
t will
re
plac
e Ba
ngko
k’s in
tern
atio
nal
Don
Mua
ng A
irpor
t, an
d w
ill h
ave
a ca
paci
ty to
han
dle
45 m
illion
pas
seng
ers
per y
ear,
incr
easi
ng to
100
mill
ion
pass
enge
rs a
nd 6
.4 m
illio
n m
etric
tons
of
car
go w
hen
the
airp
ort i
s co
mpl
ete.
Tran
spor
tatio
n
An o
verv
iew
of t
he m
ain
stra
tegi
c tra
nspo
rt lin
ks in
Tha
iland
:
ú79
,180
km
of h
ighw
ays
linki
ng a
ll 76
pro
vinc
es.
úTo
ll m
otor
way
s w
ill re
ach
4,15
0 km
by
2016
.ú
Rail
syst
ems
span
4,8
80 k
m, c
onne
ctin
g to
nei
ghbo
ring
coun
tries
.ú
4,00
0 km
of i
nlan
d w
ater
way
s an
d 8
deep
-sea
por
ts s
erve
m
ajor
shi
ppin
g po
ints
, inc
ludi
ng B
angk
ok, L
aem
Cha
bang
, M
apta
phut
, Son
gkhl
a, a
nd P
huke
t.ú
Ther
e ar
e ov
er 3
0 co
mm
erci
al a
irpor
ts n
atio
nwid
e an
d si
x m
ajor
inte
rnat
iona
l airp
orts
, inc
ludi
ng th
ose
in B
angk
ok,
Chia
ngm
ai, C
hian
grai
, Phu
ket,
Hat Y
ai, a
nd U
-Tap
ao.
úBa
ngko
k’s n
ew in
tern
atio
nal S
uvar
nabh
umi A
irpor
t ope
ned
in 2
006.
It is
Asi
a’s
larg
est a
irpor
t han
dlin
g up
to 4
5 m
illio
n pa
ssen
gers
per
ann
um, w
ith th
e po
tent
ial t
o ex
pand
and
ha
ndle
up
to 1
20 m
illio
n pa
ssen
gers
a y
ear.
Discovering the City
54
Ban
gkok
Por
t
Bang
kok
Port
is lo
cate
d on
the
Chao
Ph
raya
Riv
er b
etw
een
km+2
6.5
and
km+2
8.5
in th
e Kl
ongt
oey
dist
rict o
f Ba
ngko
k. It
is c
onne
cted
with
road
an
d ra
il sy
stem
s, w
hich
hel
p in
the
trans
porta
tion
of c
argo
es b
etw
een
the
port
and
the
hint
erla
nd, q
uick
ly a
nd
econ
omic
ally
.
Bang
kok
Port
cove
rs a
bout
3.8
1 sq
.km
., of
whi
ch 1
.39
sq.k
m. a
re in
side
the
cust
oms
fenc
e an
d ar
e ut
ilize
d fo
r op
erat
iona
l pur
pose
s.
Port
s
Laem
Cha
bang
Por
t
Abou
t 130
kilo
met
ers
sout
heas
t of
Bang
kok
is a
ver
y bu
sy d
eep-
sea
port,
La
em C
haba
ng. I
t cov
ers
an a
rea
of 2
,572
acr
es a
nd is
Tha
iland
mai
n de
ep-s
ea p
ort e
xcha
ngin
g go
ods
wor
ldw
ide.
Laem
Cha
bang
Por
t can
als
o ha
ndle
ex
tra la
rge
ship
s (S
uper
Pos
t Pa
nam
ax).
The
Port
Auth
ority
of
Thai
land
is re
spon
sibl
e fo
r the
por
t, w
hile
the
priv
ate
sect
or c
ontra
cts
to
hand
le p
ort o
pera
tions
. The
por
t is
rate
d on
e of
the
wor
ld’s
top
cont
aine
r po
rts b
y su
ch le
adin
g m
agaz
ines
as
Lloy
d’s
List
, etc
. The
por
t’s ra
ting
leap
frogg
ed fr
om a
rank
ing
of 2
3rd
in 1
998
- 199
9 to
20th
and
18th
in 2
002
and
2003
, res
pect
ivel
y.
Discovering the City
55
The
King
dom
of T
haila
nd is
wid
ely
ackn
owle
dged
as
havi
ng th
e m
ost e
xten
sive
ro
ad tr
ansp
orta
tion
netw
ork
cove
ring
mor
e th
an 2
50,0
00 k
m, m
ore
than
40
% o
f whi
ch a
re in
tern
atio
nal s
tand
ard
high
way
s th
at p
rovi
de li
nks
to
ever
y pr
ovin
ce.
Ther
e ar
e m
ore
than
225
km
of i
nter
-city
mot
orw
ays
crea
ting
links
bet
wee
n Ba
ngko
k an
d ot
her m
ajor
regi
ons
of th
e ki
ngdo
m, w
hich
are
con
tinuo
usly
be
ing
enha
nced
by
the
gove
rnm
ent a
nd a
re e
xpec
ted
to in
crea
se to
4,1
50 k
m
of 4
-lane
road
s.
New
hig
hway
s ar
e co
nsta
ntly
bei
ng b
uilt,
incl
udin
g lin
ks fr
om B
angk
ok to
th
e ne
w S
uvar
nabh
umi A
irpor
t, an
d an
am
bitio
us p
roje
ct to
spe
ed tr
ansp
ort
time
to T
haila
nd’s
sout
hern
pro
vinc
es.
Bus
es
Bus
serv
ices
wer
e fi r
st in
trodu
ced
to s
erve
com
mut
ers
in B
angk
ok in
19
07 b
y Ph
raya
Pha
kdi N
oase
t (Le
rt Se
tthab
utr).
Orig
inal
ly, t
rans
port
serv
ice
was
pro
vide
d by
hor
se-d
raw
n ca
rria
ges
and
late
r by
thre
e-w
heel
ed
Ford
mot
orca
rs w
ith tw
o lo
ng p
aral
lel
benc
hes
for s
eatin
g.
Toda
y, op
erat
ing
unde
r the
juris
dict
ion
of th
e M
inis
try o
f Tra
nspo
rt an
d Co
mm
unic
atio
ns, t
he B
angk
ok M
ass
Tran
sit A
utho
rity
(BM
TA) i
s ch
arge
d w
ith p
rovi
ding
bus
ser
vice
to p
eopl
e liv
ing
and
wor
king
in B
angk
ok a
nd th
e ne
arby
pro
vinc
es.
Citie
s an
d pr
ovin
ces
in T
haila
nd a
re
easi
ly re
ache
d by
bus
from
Ban
gkok
. Fo
r des
tinat
ions
in th
e so
uthw
est
and
the
wes
t, bu
ses
leav
e fro
m th
e So
uthe
rn B
us T
erm
inal
, wes
t of t
he
city
. For
des
tinat
ions
in th
e so
uthe
ast,
such
as
Patta
ya a
nd K
o Sa
met
, bus
es
leav
e fro
m th
e Ea
ster
n Bu
s Te
rmin
al a
t Ek
kam
ai, t
he th
ird e
aste
rn-m
ost s
top
on th
e Sk
y Tr
ain.
For
all
dest
inat
ions
no
rth a
nd n
orth
east
, the
Nor
ther
n Bu
s Te
rmin
al a
t Mo
Chit,
whi
ch c
an
be re
ache
d by
bot
h th
e Sk
y Tr
ain
and
Met
ro, i
s th
e pl
ace
to s
tart.
Trai
ns
For t
rave
l by
train
from
Ban
gkok
, mos
t pa
ssen
gers
can
beg
in th
eir j
ourn
ey
at th
e Hu
a La
mph
ong
stat
ion,
a 2
0th
turn
-of-t
he c
entu
ry It
alia
n ar
chite
ctur
e la
ndm
ark,
loca
ted
at th
e so
uthe
rn
end
of th
e Ba
ngko
k su
bway
sys
tem
. He
re, t
rain
s co
nnec
t Ban
gkok
to
Mal
aysi
a to
the
sout
h, C
hian
g M
ai a
nd
beyo
nd to
the
north
, and
Kho
n Ka
en
and
beyo
nd to
the
north
east
. Tha
iland
’s ra
il tra
nspo
rtatio
n, w
hich
dat
es b
ack
mor
e th
an c
entu
ry, i
s ex
tens
ive
and
cove
rs 4
,000
km
on
thre
e lin
es th
at
inte
rsec
t in
Bang
kok.
Road
Net
wor
ks
Discovering the City
56MA
SS T
RA
NSI
T
Bang
kok
has
two
type
s of
mas
s tra
nsit
syst
ems
that
con
nect
with
ea
ch o
ther
: the
BTS
Sky
Tra
in a
nd th
e M
RT s
ubw
ay. I
n 19
99 th
e fi r
st s
yste
m k
now
n as
the
Sky
Trai
n op
ened
on
over
head
trac
ks
that
cov
er 5
5 ki
lom
eter
s, s
ervi
ng 2
3 st
atio
ns o
n tw
o lin
es a
nd
carr
ying
app
roxi
mat
ely
300,
000
pass
enge
rs p
er w
orki
ng d
ay, w
ith
an a
vera
ge p
asse
nger
trip
equ
alin
g a
dist
ance
of 6
.25
kilo
met
ers.
Sky
trai
n
Ther
e ar
e cu
rren
tly tw
o ro
utes
on
the
Sky
Trai
n, th
e Su
khum
vit L
ine
and
the
Silo
m L
ine.
The
y co
ver m
uch
of th
e ce
ntra
l city
and
its
man
y co
mm
erci
al,
resi
dent
ial a
nd to
uris
t are
as, w
ith
exte
nsio
ns p
lann
ed to
out
lyin
g ar
eas.
Th
e tra
ins
run
daily
bet
wee
n 6:
00 a
m
and
12:0
0 m
idni
ght,
with
freq
uent
se
rvic
e th
at in
crea
ses
durin
g ru
sh
hour
s an
d a
fare
that
is b
ased
on
the
dist
ance
trav
eled
.
The
BTS
Sky
Trai
n’s
high
-cap
acity
op
erat
ing
syst
em e
xper
ienc
es a
lmos
t no
bre
akdo
wns
and
has
a n
ear 1
00%
on
-tim
e re
cord
. Eac
h tra
in c
an c
arry
ov
er 1
,000
pas
seng
ers,
a s
imila
r nu
mbe
r tha
t wou
ld re
quire
the
use
of 8
00 c
ars,
mak
ing
the
BTS
Sky
Trai
n on
e of
the
mos
t env
ironm
enta
lly
frien
dly
mas
s tra
nsit
syst
ems
in
Thai
land
.
In th
e pa
st 6
yea
rs th
e BT
S Sk
y Tr
ain
has
oper
ated
one
of t
he s
afes
t and
m
ost p
unct
ual m
ass
trans
it sy
stem
s in
th
e re
gion
. It h
as c
over
ed m
ore
than
10
.5 m
illio
n ki
lom
eter
s an
d se
rvic
ed
over
227
mill
ion
pass
enge
rs.
57
Subw
ay
In J
uly
2004
, a n
ew M
RT s
ubw
ay
syst
em w
as la
unch
ed c
onne
ctin
g th
e no
rther
n tra
in s
tatio
n of
Ban
g Su
e to
th
e Hu
a La
mph
ong
railw
ay s
tatio
n ne
ar th
e ci
ty c
ente
r, w
hile
als
o ru
nnin
g th
roug
h th
e ea
ster
n pa
rt of
the
city
. The
sub
way
als
o co
nnec
ts
with
the
BTS
stat
ions
at M
o Ch
it, A
sok
and
Sala
Dae
ng.
Stre
tchi
ng o
ver 2
0 ki
lom
eter
s ac
ross
m
etro
polit
an B
angk
ok, t
he M
RT
Chal
oem
Rat
chm
ongk
hon
Line
sta
rts
at H
ua L
amph
ong
Railw
ay S
tatio
n an
d te
rmin
ates
at B
ang
Sue
Railw
ay
Stat
ion.
The
18
stat
ions
alo
ng th
e ro
ute
are
at H
ua L
amph
ong,
Sam
Ya
n, S
ilom
, Lum
phin
i, Kh
long
Toe
i, Qu
een
Sirik
it N
atio
nal C
onve
ntio
n Ce
nter
, Suk
hum
vit,
Phet
chab
uri,
Phra
Ra
m 9
, Tha
iland
Cul
tura
l Cen
ter,
Huai
Kh
wan
g, S
utth
isan
, Rat
chad
aphi
sek,
La
t Phr
ao, P
haho
n Yo
thin
, Cha
tuch
ak
Park
, Kam
phae
ng P
het a
nd B
ang
Sue.
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