Southern extension of Purple Line 65% complete
The southern extension of the Purple Line reaches 65% completion as its tunnel-boring machine breaks through to Memorial Bridge station, marking a key milestone.
The southern extension of the Purple Line, designed to connect the north and south banks of the Chao Phraya River, has progressed by 65%, with its tunnel-boring machine reaching Memorial Bridge station, the Mass Rapid Transit Authority (MRTA) announced.
On Friday, Montree Dechasakulsom, chairman of the MRTA board of directors, and Gardphajon Udomdhammabhakdi, MRTA governor, inspected the latest progress on the fourth contract of the project covering the Memorial Bridge–Dao Khanong section.
They witnessed a milestone moment as the first tunnel-boring machine (TBM), nicknamed Pasuta TBM, broke through into the Memorial Bridge station, which is also under construction.
As part of the fourth contract, carried out by Unique Engineering and Construction Plc, the TBM bored a tunnel from Somdej Phra Pinklao station, through the sixth shaft of the subway, to Wongwian Yai, and finally to Memorial Bridge station. Montree said the completion of tunnel boring for this section marked a major milestone for the project.
During the inspection, Montree instructed the contractor to strictly comply with safety standards and to minimise traffic disruption above the construction site.
While the overall southern extension of the Purple Line has achieved 65% completion, the civil works under the fourth contract have progressed by 63.3%, with 3.3 kilometres of tunnels bored since work began in January last year.
Next, the first TBM will be relocated to Somdej Phra Pinklao station to bore a tunnel in the opposite direction towards the “Cut and Cover” point, where the underground section will connect to the elevated line at Dao Khanong station.
The southern extension of the Purple Line spans 23.63 kilometres with 17 stations — 10 underground and seven elevated. Once complete, it will connect Tao Poon in the north to Ratburana in the south, enabling the entire Purple Line to link the northern and northwestern parts of the Bangkok Metropolitan Region with the southern part of the capital.
