City bus service cut as Bangkok enters partial lockdown
The Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) will cut the number of bus trips on routes with few passengers from Wednesday, in a bid to contain the surge of Covid-19 infections.
BMTA director Surachai Iamwachirasakul explained that the Land Transport Department on April 17 asked transport operators to reduce services in red-zone provinces as much as possible.
A partial lockdown was imposed in Bangkok on Monday, with 31 types of business ordered to shut for two weeks as daily infections in Thailand rose past 2,000.
"Since many government and private agencies have allowed staff to work from home, while many educational institutions have organised online courses, the BMTA will reduce the number of bus services where passenger numbers have dropped," he said.
He added that BMTA had imposed Covid controls to gain confidence among travellers, including temperature checks on all staff, frequent cleaning of buses, social distancing onboard and use of the ThaiChana and MorChana apps.
"As banknotes and coins may help spread Covid-19, passengers can pay their fare via BMTA electronic tickets, contactless debit or credit cards, state welfare cards, or mobile banking apps," he added.