Station artwork won’t burnish tawdry service

When Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha presided over the official opening of the Blue Line extension at Wat Mangkon station earlier this week, he may have had the urge to take selfies with the Sino-Portuguese style-art in the background. Such behaviour is a big trend among netizens these days.

Wat Mangkon is the first of four stations of the Blue Line’s extension which opened unofficially in July. The Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA), which operates the system, has boasted about the station, as well as Sanam Chai in Phra Nakhon district, as being two of the most beautiful stations in the country. During the two-month trial period, the extended section was used by 50,000 commuters during weekdays and even more on the weekends. Many of the passengers were on a mission to visit Wat Mangkon station, named after the famous Chinese temple in the neighbourhood, and take selfies.

The Blue Line’s 15.9-km extension from Hua Lamphong to outer Lak Song is a praiseworthy accomplishment. The extended route, which has a total of 11 stations, is the first city train system to penetrate the city’s old town quarters and link Phra Nakhon district to Thon Buri by going under the Chao Phraya River.

However, I despise the new marketing strategy which focuses on the aesthetics instead of the system’s efficiency. I mention this because it cost the operator a large sum of money to beautify the structure. Yet, this large sum of cash could have been used more effectively to improve the service. In this case, it is important to remember the old adage: beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Somchai Kwangtongpanich, a merchant turned community history researcher who is a native of Chinatown, is not impressed with the “art” in Wat Mangkon station which is just a stone’s throw away from his home.

The station’s designers used several symbols which represent the famous temple including lotuses and dragons on a shiny red background where coffee beans are discreetly placed. Should I mention that a coffee giant is the major sponsor of this station?

In Mr Somchai’s opinion, “coffee” has nothing to do with Chinatown’s history. Residents in the bustling business district are Chinese, and most of them drink tea. Those who designed the station and its sponsor mean well; however, coffee is not the Chinese way of life.

All in all, he views the art inside Wat Mangkon station as a ngiew while the grandiose artwork inside Sanam Chai station, which depicts the nearby Grand Palace, is similar to a likay. Such terminologies are meant to show how the stations are excessively elaborate and unrealistic.

The MRT is not the only rail operator which has its priorities all wrong when it comes to developing a rail system. In recent months, the State Railway of Thailand has announced plans to renovate or rebuild train stations nationwide. The agency said all the stations are to reflect the art and culture of the regions they are located in. For example, stations in the city’s south will be painted blue — the colour of the sea.

In pushing for such a plan, which costs some two billion baht, the SRT has ignored calls by conservationists that train stations should be preserved in their original form. Again, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

However, I am perplexed with the way the SRT, just like the MRT, wants to spend money for such purposes, instead of improving the current service. The agency seems not to realise that the trains, which are used by those living in the suburbs, are so packed that one can hardly cram in during the rush hours. Moreover, many of the trains are in a shabby state. As we know, conventional trains are synonymous with slow motion.

Going back to the MRT’s Blue Line, it’s a disappointment that the operator has done little to correct the flaws in the original system, and instead spent so much time and effort on the decor.

Before writing this piece, I took the MRT Blue Line one morning only to find myself watching an in-train TV ad which dubbed the service as the “Happy Blue Line”. It’s such a sharp contrast to reality as train passengers had to scramble to squeeze themselves onto an excessively packed train. As I was exiting the platform, I bumped into quite a few posters that tried to make me believe that the beautiful stations will improve my mobility. Happy? I’m not.

I just want to remind the rail operators that passengers’ needs are very simple: an efficient service which translates to a longer train route, a comprehensive network, and adequate trains to accommodate the passengers who live in the city, in particular.

Forget about the beauty which plays zero role in improving the service that every passenger deserves.