Cable car planned for Chao Phraya
SAMUT PRAKAN SETS AMBITIOUS PLAN
A cable car has been proposed for Samut Prakan, which could provide commuters with quick access to central Bangkok via the skytrain extension.
When the skytrain eventually reaches the heart of the province, the PAO plans to have in place a connecting cable car that will stretch right across the Chao Phraya into the heart of the charming old district of Phra Samut Chedi.
To Chonsawat Asavahame, the former head of the PAO, that will link the quiet western side of the province to the central area south of the Royal Navy Academy and on to the centre of Bangkok.
Phra Samut Chedi district is relatively untouched by tourism, despite its century-old white riverside pagoda, a provincial icon but not one that is easy to reach.
With the cable car, though, the challenges of travelling to this sacred place will simply be a matter of going from the skytrain to the cable car.
The j ourney, Mr Chonsawat said, “should take less than half an hour from Siam Square to cross the river to Phra Samut Chedi”.
The PAO launched the 400-million baht cable car project to take advantage of the skytrain’s Green Line, with its elevated rail track being extended from Soi Bearing to Samut Prakan.
A route to the cable car will connect to Samut Prakan Station with a skywalk linked with nearby spots including Samut Prakan Polytechnique and Talat Khlong, a local market, Mr Chonsawat said.
Tourists will be able to enjoy both historic and natural sightseeing, including such sites such as the ancient riverside forts of Phi Suea Samut, Nakkharat Sawatthayanon and Chulachomklao.
Besides serving tourism, the cable car, which is near Suvarnabhumi airport, will bring more financial benefits to the communities in Phra Samut Chedi district.
Mr Chonsawat unveiled the project yesterday as navy commander Adm Kraisorn Chansuvanich presided over a ceremony to lay a foundation stone for the cable car’s construction in part of the compound of the Nakkharat Sawatthayanon Fort.
To ensure the project goes smoothly, Mr Chonsawat said, the operator will be required to liaise with local administrative bodies and the navy, which owns many plots of land in the area.
The PAO has hired King Mongkut Institute of Technology Ladkrabang to design the cable car system and conduct an environmental impact assessment study.
Meanwhile, the Rural Roads and Highways departments are holding talks to avoid overlaps of their infrastructure projects in Samut Prakan’s Phra Samut Chedi district.
The Rural Roads Department is to build a new 60-kilometre road from Rama II to Thepharak Road, which includes two new bridges — over the Thachin river linking Tha Chalom and Maha Chai and over the Chao Phraya, linking Phra Samut Chedi and Muang districts in Samut Prakan.