Five piers along Chao Phraya undergoing renovation
The Marine Department is moving forward with the plan to improve five piers in Bangkok to serve as tourist attractions along Chao Phraya River within this year, while the second phase will cover 15 piers with a total budget of Bt850 million.
Director-general Witthaya Thamuang has said that the department has spent around Bt190 million to improve the landscape and build additional facilities at five piers in Bangkok to facilitate people’s marine transport and promote tourism along Chao Phraya River. “This project is expected to be completed within this year, as the Wat Arun and Sathorn piers are nearly finished and will open by the end of July,” he said. “Meanwhile, Tha Chang, Rachini and Tha Tian piers should all be open before December.”
Witthaya added that when finished, each pier will feature beautiful and unique architecture and modern facilities for travellers of all age groups and physical abilities. “You can see an example from the pilot project that’s already finished -- the Marine Department Pier -- which is among the most beautiful piers of Chao Phraya River visited by many tourists all year long,” he added.
The director-general also said that his department will expand the project in phase 2 to an additional 15 piers in Bangkok. “The second phase is expected to start around 2020-2021 with a construction budget of around Bt800 million, and an additional Bt50 million for a marine traffic control system and related software installation,” he said. “The last phase should start in 2022-2023 and will cover 11 more piers.”
