Congestion returns as holiday ends
Play
MAJOR arteries in gateway provinces were clogged with vehicles all day yesterday, as the five-day New Year holiday break drew to a close and people made their way back to Bangkok by car or bus.
Road congestion in Pathum Thani north of Bangkok and Nakhon Ratchasima, the access route from the Central region to the vast Northeast, was especially heavy since early morning.
The notorious Highway 304 from Nakhon Ratchasima and Sa Kaew, which serves as an alternative link to the Northeast from the capital, was jam-packed with traffic, which formed tailbacks stretching up to six kilometres in several sections.
Traffic on the Bangkok-Nakhon Ratchasima portion of Mittrapap Road streamed at an average 40-50 kilometres per hour, half the off-peak season speed, while most service areas along the thoroughfare were overflowing with cars and buses parked for meals and breaks.
Travellers crowded souvenir shops in both provinces and elsewhere looking for gifts for their return to the capital. Many farmers’ families told reporters that they were carrying sacks of rice that they had harvested in their home province during the break to cook and eat in Bangkok.
Transport terminals in most provinces, especially in key cities, were packed with passengers heading to Bangkok.
Many who missed their bus turned to commuter vans.
According to the daily road safety and casualties update, Chiang Mai saw the most accidents at 16, Phichit was the most deadly with four fatalities and Lampang suffered the most injured at 18.
For the first five of the “seven dangerous days”, Chiang Rai reported the highest death toll at 14, while Chiang Mai counted the most injured at 106.
