LOOKING FORWARD TO THAI DESTINY…

TRAFFIC JAM, HEAVY CONSTRUCTIONAL PARTS FALLING OVER TRAFFIC, SOLVABLE PROBLEMS

By ... Professor Dr. Suchatvee Suwansawat, the president of the Innovation Institute of Smart Community, and the President of KMITL.

There have long been several BTS routes simultaneously constructed in Bangkok under terrible traffic consequences, day after day, from dusk till dawn. For traveling throughout the tough mass transition system in Bangkok under terrible traffic and BTS’s constructions it must have at least 1 hour more or longer, for sure, for the compensation traveling time. The harder the traffic has been the more serious the pollution went on and it has long been the unavoidable agony of no ecstasy for the Bangkokians of no appeal. 

When we watched the accident news when the huge construction parts were destructively fallen over cars under the traffic. Fortunately, no death happened but the cars got completely destroyed.  It can imply that driving in Bangkok means driving in the battle of danger. Actually, such incidental condition can be solved through some proper behaviors of regulations. For example, normally, construction company always blocked one or two traffic lanes along the traffic areas for doing the activities of the constructions, temporary office, warehouse pile and equipment installation that can lessen the traffic space and terrible traffic consequences. As the civil engineer, noticeable, for the BTS’s projects, if systematic management were done, no lost traffic space will never happen. Some proper times with proper spaces must be managed for being used throughout the construction processes to avoid terrible and dangerous traffic problems. Any traffic space ready for being returned to the actual traffic must be suddenly allowed. Such an idea could be leading to the ways of success if close relationship of the construction management or contractors and the local traffic management are operated under the supportive missions from 1) the local officers of the Bangkok Metropolitan, 2) local traffic policemen, 3) local construction manager, and 4) drivers of the problematic traffic. Normally, major traffic problem could come from the local infrastructure moving; the allowance from the Bangkok Metropolitan must be cooperatively authorized suddenly while the local police must be active on the traffic laws with the smart traffic management and the BTS managers or owners such as State Railways of Thailand  and Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand  must command the construction company to definitely legally behave under the standardized safety rules of the construction processes. Such issues have long worried Thai lives; safety first must be done. The traffic disciplines must have long been followed; to avoid terrible traffic condition, no Thai driving styles with emotional risky ways can be practiced anymore. Not only in Bangkok, Thailand, but also in many major capitals such as in Boston, USA, last 20 years, under the mega project of the Central Artery or Big Dig to construct huge tunnel for the major rapid traffic, it must have the mega digging and had to uplift the original highway of 12 lanes running through the center of the Boston Town from North to South, and had to construct new replacement of underground highway. The mega project had long been processed for about 20 years with the investment of about 500 billion baht and it was mentioned as the biggest project of the USA at that moment; bigger than the combination of all BTS’s projects in Bangkok. 

At the mega project movement, Boston understood the problem and focused on efficient rush traffic management without returning any traffic trouble to the public. Moreover, such mega one was considered to be very complex and challenging for many big digs for many big tunnels under many most traditional railways of the America Continent had been done while the show must go on for the railway services. Original infrastructures must have been moved and it was harder than that of Bangkok’s; however, they could be effectively done with only few accidental problems. From such the exemplified case, of course, it should have the suitable possible solution to that of Bangkok’s with the confidence of the constructional safety. We can because we think and believe we can do our possible, conditionally, are we sincerely starting the possible safety start, we will start the feasible safety state. Can we?

Can we?