MRTA goes forward with land grab bill
The Mass Rapid Transit Authority is pushing ahead with an amendment to its 16-year MRTA Act to give it the power to expropriate vast tracts of land for commercial and social purposes.
The construction of new electric rail lines across Bangkok has prompted the MRTA to acquire more land, including areas that house communities, for development. The move to amend the law followed the advice of the Council of State.
The state legal arm suggests the city’s electric railway operator must “change the law first in order to have power to take the land”, said deputy permanent secretary for transport Peraphon Thawornsupacharoen, referring to the MRTA Act, which has been enforced since 2000.
Areas it eyes for development projects are those located near rail tracks and in the vicinity of maintenance depots belonging to both elevated tracks and subways of Blue, Purple, Green, Yellow and Pink lines, Mr Peraphon said.
Only 20km of Blue Line subway linking Hua Lamphong and Bang Sue and the 26km Purple Line elevated rail tack that connect Nonthaburi’s Bang Yai and Bangkok’s Bang Sue are currently in service. The development projects, which include a plan to build shopping centres, not only aim to boost the MRTA’s revenue but are also driven by an intention to build new residential areas for low-income earners, Mr Peraphon said.
These goals will happen once the MRTA is empowered to make full use of the land, so the agency will start by forwarding the law amendment proposal to the MRTA board as soon as early next month, he said.
After approval by the board and Transport Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith, the cabinet will then be asked to consider it in March. The Council of State and the National Legislative Assembly will eventually complete the amendment process by deliberating the law in detail.
“But when the amended act will be enforced depends on the time taken by the Council of State as it needs to consult various state agencies,” Mr Peraphon said.
There is more than 1,000 rai of land for expropriation, he said. The MRTA has already drafted development plans at depots and intends to build underground maintenance centres and parkand-ride buildings (parking spaces for the mass-transit passengers) and a shopping complex.
The Pink Line, which connects Nonthaburi’s Khae Rai and Bangkok’s Min Buri district, will have a depot and a parkand-ride area covering 280 rai of land at Ramkhamhaeng Road Soi 192, according to the MRTA.
Others include the Yellow Line’s 112 rai of land at the Si Iam Intersection in Bang Na area; the Purple Line’s 150 rai of land on a section of Kanchanaphisek Road; the Green Line extension’s 141 rai of land at Samut Prakan housing estate; and the Green Line extension’s 120 rai of land at Khu Khot station in Pathum Thani’s Lam Luk Ka district.