Transport Minster Arkom Termpittayapaisith and a team from the Ministry of Transport visited the construction site yesterday to check on progress of the project.
Mr Termpittayapaisith said, “Construction of the underpass was delayed again at the beginning of the year due to rain and floods. I was told that some of the road on the southbound side collapsed but workers have already repaired the area and made the road surface safer.
“I have also been told that more steel reinforcement bars have been put in the retaining wall. The durability of the wall was inspected by engineers from the Highways Department and Thailand Engineering Institue, especially on the side where the road collapsed,” he said.
“I have ordered the construction company to make the road going into the tunnel as soon as possible and open the tunnel for traffic on April 10. The contractor said they will finish on that day. If they do not they will face a fine.
“To solve the issue of flooding during the rainy season, the contractor will set up 4 large water pumps as designed by the Highways Department,” he added.
In addition, Mr Termpittayapaisith also said that along with the construction of the four underpasses (Darasamut, Bangku, Samkong and Chalong Circle) to reduce traffic congestion on the island, Phuket is also going to see the introduction of a light rail project to help with the issue.
“The light rail project is being discussed within my department and is now undergoing a preliminary study. The distance of the railway will cover between 50-60 kilometres from Phuket International Airport to Phuket town.
“Many foreign investors have shown an interesting in this project and are willing to invest. I believe the grace period for the study into the project is around 2-3 months. We will then let the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand take over with the project,” he said.
“We will have then have another meeting to make a decision whether the government or private sector will invest in the project,” Mr Termpittayapaisith added.
Meanwhile, Chalermpon Wongkietkun Project Engineer from the Highways Department told The Phuket News today (Feb 12), “The digging out of the tunnel was completed last Friday (Feb 5) and now all that is left to do now is construct the road into the tunnel. The road will be 240 metres in length. Then water pumps will be installed in the tunnel.
“We aim to have that work complete by April 3 and then the tunnel will be open to at least two lanes of traffic by April 10,” he said.
“The only concern for us now is the weather. Other than that, construction is going well.”