City public space drive just a token effort
Last week, the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) boasted it made three million baht in three months from the fines it imposed on motorcyclists who drove on pavements.
Deputy Bangkok governor Sakoltee Phattiyakul told local media the BMA has doubled the fine it levies for the offence to 1,000 baht. The main offenders are reckless motorcycle taxi drivers who have compromised ease of access in the city and public safety to take over footpaths for their own ends. The maximum fine is 5,000 baht.
The city said over 8,000 motorcyclists were caught riding on pavements during the period, violating the Maintenance of Cleanliness and Orderliness Act 1992.
About 3,000 were given verbal warnings and the rest were f ined by tessakit officers (city inspectors). Altogether, there are 230 tessakit checkpoints across the city.
The stricter measure is to stop the misuse of pavements. Under the campaign, people are encouraged to respect the rights of others to use public space.
While city residents are glad the BMA is getting tough on violators of public spaces such as pavements, there is a question over how long the measure will last.
Residents know too well that the BMA is an expert in devising “initiatives”, which it then fails to sustain.
Many remember how the BMA enforces stricter measures when complaints reach a peak — by assigning its tessakit officers to monitor violations — that last only a few months after hitting the headlines. The BMA’s enthusiasm fades after a few months when the media has lost interest.
I can’t remember the number of times City Hall has tried to fine people who unfairly misuse public spaces for their own benefit as well as those who litter.
In 2016, the BMA announced it would ask tessakit officers to stop people from littering public places such as pavements and waterways, with violators facing a fine. Later that year, residents were also encouraged to help by taking pictures of wrongdoers.
Last year, again, the BMA offered an incentive to anyone who could send proof of a violation, such as photos or a video clip, to help district offices fine a wrongdoer.
Earlier this year, the agency came up with an idea of making motorcycle taxi drivers monitor violations of pavement use.
It is absurd that motorcycle taxi drivers — notorious for riding on pavements themselves — could be given such a role.
It is also absurd how the BMA has tried to reclaim pavements from street vendors but handed the privilege of using this public space to motorcycle taxi drivers as their workplace.
How many times do we have to hear about a new initiative that is not practical when implemented, or can never be sustained?
Bangkok residents know very well that the problem doesn’t lie with the strictness of laws and regulations but a lack of enforcement. A number of initiatives, some launched with great fanfare, have been abandoned without any success.
With regard to the new punishments for pavement violators, I would encourage the city administrators to inspect small sois in Pathumwan where business operators have seized pavements for their own use.
Many mechanics use the space as their workplaces.
Quite a few garage operators even repair cars in roadside parking spaces. Ironically, those pavements are just a stone’s throw from Pathumwan district’s temporary office. Why do the district officials turn a blind eye?
During my visit to Munich earlier this year, I noticed straight lines are drawn on the pavements in front of many bars. Some run parallel to the the pavements, while others take the form of a small square box — probably a square metre — just next to buildings’ walls.
I later learned that these lines are to let bar operators know they can’t put their tables and chairs in those areas.
If they are allowed outside, tables and chairs must to be cleared after 10pm.
A friend who visited bars in London last week found controls over the use of public spaces were equally strict.
Bar goers who drink in a garden are required to drink inside after 10pm, and they are asked to keep their voices down when leaving or the operators could get in trouble.
Operators and residents in these cities respect the law because of strict law enforcement, which means heavy fines. It’s a different story in Bangkok as people know they will never really be punished due lax enforcement. Should I mention kickbacks?
There is a popular restaurant in my neighbourhood — to be more exact it is near the district office — which has taken over the entire pavement for its business.
Every evening, the pavement is split by its owner into two halves, one for the dining tables and the other for waiting customers. My complaints to the BMA hotline, 1555, are in vain.
The tessakit officers tell me that such conduct is fine as it has taken place after 7pm.
They talk as if there are no pedestrians at night time. The district office’s hours may end at 4.30pm, but what about residents who return from work after dark?
Many would argue that street food is part of the charm of Bangkok and I know such shops are good for the local economy, but the vendors need to be regulated so the rights of others are respected.
It’s good the BMA is thinking about motorcycle-free pavements, but we cannot be sure if the crackdown will last.
Besides, it’s not only motorcyclists who make the pavements unwalkable. Others do too. It’s time the BMA looks around and ensures pavements are a real public space.
The BMA’s enthusiasm fades after a few months when the media has lost interest.
Sirinya Wattanasukchai is a columnist, Bangkok Post.