Krungthep Bridge opens to accommodate luxury yacht, causing heavy traffic jams
Rama III Road and nearby sois witnessed heavy traffic congestion after Krungthep Bridge was opened to allow a tall yacht to pass on Tuesday afternoon.
The large luxury vessel was seen sailing past the opened bridge before traffic movement could return to normal.
Krungthep Bridge is a bascule one spanning the Chao Phraya River, connecting Thonburi to Bangkok’s Phra Nakhon district. Built in 1952, it is claimed to be the only functional drawbridge left in Southeast Asia.
The bridge takes roughly 20 minutes to open using the main mechanism powered by electricity. It also has a backup engine-powered mechanism, but this takes around 30 minutes to complete the task.
If all else fails, the bridge can be opened manually using a worm drive, which takes at least an hour.
Krungthep Bridge opens a few times each month to accommodate large ships, mostly Royal Thai Navy vessels, on the way to the shipyard at Bangkok Dock Company (1957), a state enterprise specialising in ship repairs and maintenance.
The Department of Rural Roads has had to close roads to traffic to perform maintenance on the bridge from time to time due to its old age to make sure its mechanisms still work.
