He said the trio had had their bodywork strengthened and their engines rebuilt to conform to 21st century standards. The deputy-minister stated that commuters and tourists would be able to notice a distinct improvement in the quality of their transport.
The renovated buses have been deployed on Bangkok bus routes 36, 73 and 168. The trio are the first of 672 buses the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA) wants to renovate and put back into service. The authority’s director said the government had already given the green light for another 40 buses to be refurbished.
Surachai Iamvajirasakul carried on by saying that the renovation should take about two months. He finished off with the explanation that the timetable would see another 40 to 50 vehicles reworked at a time so there was no impact on service frequencies for commuters.
The renovation of the buses is a part of an overall THB4.3 billion scheme to upgrade the BMTA fleet. The agency is also looking for cabinet approval to buy almost 700 new buses. These are a mix of NGV gas and electric powered vehicles.
Bangkok transport bureau says revamped buses will enhance service
News in Asia
Bangkok’s public transport bureau put the first three of its fleet of renovated buses back on the road yesterday. Omsin Chivapruek is the Thai deputy-transport-minister and he attended the ceremony as the trio of revamped vehicles were reinstated into service.