BMA orders 14,000 phone booths junked

Theerachon yesterday presided over a meeting with the BMA Public Works Department and related officials from 50 district offices to prepare for discussions with infrastructurerelated agencies on March 28. After yesterday’s meeting, he said Bangkok had nearly 30,000 phone booths – 9,882 of them authorised and 18,944 unauthorised. Of the unauthorised booths, about 14,000 belong to concessionaire companies whose permits have expired, while about 4,000 belong to companies currently negotiating with the BMA for permits. 

The official said he had instructed the BMA’s Public Works Department to demolish the 14,000 booths and to work with the BMA’s Legal and Litigation Office to determine a standard punishment for the owners of unauthorised phone booths, to be implemented by the 50 district offices. Theerachon said the number of authorised phone booths was sufficient. Some booths didn’t have phones in them, and some occupied already toonarrow footpaths, he said, adding that he personally wanted to see the number of booths fall below 9,000.

Theerachon said the March 28 meeting would assign a multipleparty committee to oversee infrastructure and discuss such topics as repairs to lampposts; the installation of additional CCTV cameras at stadiums, mosques and public spaces; and putting electrical wires underground. If the joint projects ran smoothly, Bangkok would be more orderly by December 5, he said.