Governor Sophon Suwannarat ordered the Phuket Highways Office to investigate after photos of the cracks were posted on social media on Wednesday (Oct 25), reported the Phuket office of the Public Relations Department (PR Phuket).
The Phuket Highways District reported that the cracks occurred on the concrete surface above the main barrier concrete where an expansion bolt was drilled. Further cracks occurred every two to three metres and gaps in the concrete were found, the HIghways Office confirmed.
The expansion bolt is part of the main support for a large steel beam that hangs over the traffic lanes below. The Highways Office will install further supports for the steel beam and use non-shrinking concrete to fill the cracks, said the report.
While repairs are being made, the Phuket Highways Office will also repair a section of the concrete barrier on the southbound lanes at the tunnel.
The barrier was damaged when it was struck by a vehicle, leaving a four-metre gap in the concrete barrier, which has long been filled with the plastic “Jersey barriers”, also called concrete step barriers.
The Phuket Highways Office will carry out the repairs as “quickly as possible with public safety in mind”, concluded the report.