Korat highway gears up for increased Songkran traffic
The Nakhon Ratchasima Highway Office announced on Thursday that it would open three checkpoints on Motorway No 6 that runs from Bang Pa-in district in Ayutthaya to Kham Thale So district in Nakhon Ratchasima (Korat) on April 11, in time for Songkran, when more motorists are expected to use the highway to travel to their hometowns in the Northeast.
The first two checkpoints are located at Km65 on Mittraphap Road in Korat’s Pakchong district and at the intersection with Highway No 201 in Sikhiu district, both of which had been closed for maintenance.
The third checkpoint is located in Kham Thale So district and will be open for the first time this Songkran to allow motorists to use the brand new 64km-long last section of the motorway that leads to central Korat.
The three checkpoints will open only for one-way traffic to facilitate the smooth flow of vehicles.
From April 11 to 14, they will open for traffic heading to Korat, and from April 15 to 18, they will be accessible to motorists travelling to Bang Pa-in.
Nakhon Ratchasima Highway Office chief Chitphol Lao-An said he estimated the opening of the three checkpoints would help reduce traffic congestion on Mittraphap Road by 25 per cent, or approximately 25,000 vehicles per day, and therefore make Songkran travel a bit more convenient.
