New shuttle boats linking three coastal provinces to be discussed

Jirut Wisaljitr, director general of the Harbour Department, said on Monday that he had assigned his deputy, Nut Jubjai, to carry out a feasibility study into opening regular shuttle boat services between Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga.
Jirut said he was confident the study would be completed soon, paving the way for the services to start by the end of the year.
“Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga are the pearls of the Andaman sea and many tourists visit them but there are no regular passenger boat services linking them,” said Jirut.
His department favoured inter-province shuttle boat services because this offered the best way of providing an efficient service while also keeping costs down for tourists.
He said his deputy would survey the infrastructure needed to launch the shuttle boat service and would consult with local boat operators as well as carry out market research on the needs of passengers.
Jirut will visit the three provinces this week to meet passenger boat operators and discuss possible routes for the new services.
He said his department would also ensure that existing passenger boat services operators in the country improved their services to reach international standards.
The operators would be required to replace their ageing fleets with new boats and to increase the number of vessels on hand to cut the waiting time for passengers.
The operators, including the Chao Phraya Express Boat, Seatran Ferry and Raja Ferry Port, will be required to submit proposals to the Harbour Department for consideration, Jirut added.