NIDA Poll: Two-thirds of Southerners support Landbridge project

Southerners broadly support Landbridge project, NIDA Poll finds

The National Institute of Development Administration, or NIDA Poll, has released the results of a public opinion survey titled “What Southerners Say: The Landbridge Project is Coming”, showing broad support for the government’s proposed Landbridge project, despite concerns over its environmental and community impact.

The survey was conducted from April 28–30, 2026, among 1,455 eligible voters aged 18 and above across 14 southern provinces.
NIDA Poll said the survey used multi-stage sampling, with a 97.0% confidence level and a margin of error of ±0.05.

Limited understanding despite widespread awareness

The poll found that most respondents had heard of the Landbridge project, but many said they had only limited understanding of it.

Question: How aware are respondents of the Landbridge project?

• 54.43% said they had heard of the project but had minimal understanding.
• 26.67% said they had heard of it and had some understanding.
• 10.52% said they had heard of it and understood it very well.
• 7.08% said they had never heard of it at all.
• 1.30% said they had heard of it but did not understand it at all.

Environment tops list of concerns

Among the 1,333 respondents who had prior knowledge of the project, environmental impact was the most commonly cited concern.

Question: What are respondents most concerned about regarding the Landbridge project?

• 38.03% were concerned about environmental impact on land and at sea.
• 33.16% said they were not concerned about anything.
• 29.71% were concerned about the impact on local communities, such as land expropriation and lifestyle changes.
• 25.81% were concerned about corruption and lack of transparency.
• 15.30% were concerned about the project’s long-term cost-effectiveness or worthwhileness.
• 12.08% were concerned about opposition from local communities.
• 11.78% were unsure whether the project would benefit southern residents.
• 11.40% were unsure whether the project would benefit the Thai population nationwide.
• 10.50% were concerned about construction delays or failure to meet project goals.
• 7.58% were concerned about government budget issues if the state invests in the project itself.
• 6.30% were concerned about difficulties in finding investors.
• 6.15% were concerned that Thailand could become a strategic arena for competition among superpowers.
• 4.35% believed the project might not actually materialise.
• 3.98% were concerned about opposition from NGOs, academics or politicians.
• 0.98% were concerned about international opposition.

More than two-thirds express support

The survey found that 67.22% of respondents either strongly or somewhat agreed with the Landbridge project, while 32.78% expressed disagreement.

Question: What is respondents’ overall position on the Landbridge project?

• 34.21% strongly agreed with the project.
• 33.01% somewhat agreed.
• 19.43% did not really agree.
• 13.35% strongly disagreed.

Nakhon Si Thammarat, Songkhla and Surat Thani had highest sample representation

The respondents came from all 14 southern provinces, with the largest shares from Nakhon Si Thammarat, Songkhla and Surat Thani.

Sample distribution by province

NIDA Poll explained that the survey sample was drawn from eligible voters across all 14 southern provinces, with the largest share of respondents from Nakhon Si Thammarat, followed by Songkhla and Surat Thani.

• Nakhon Si Thammarat: 17.11%
• Songkhla: 15.46%
• Surat Thani: 11.41%

The rest of the sample came from Narathiwat, Trang, Pattani, Chumphon, Phatthalung, Krabi, Yala, Phuket, Satun, Phang Nga and Ranong, in descending order of representation.

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