via Bangkok Post, 15 April 2023: The Fine Arts Department has raised concerns over the need to avoid as many historic sites as possible along a new extension of the Purple Line which will run through Bangkok’s Rattanakosin Island.
The Fine Arts Department has raised concerns over the need to avoid as many historic sites as possible along a new extension of the Purple Line which will run through Bangkok’s Rattanakosin Island old town area.
The Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA), meanwhile, gave assurances that it shares these concerns and will work closely with the department when drafting proposals for the construction of the new line.
The 101-billion-baht Southern Purple Line (Tao Pun-Rat Burana) is already 8% complete and due to be ready in 2027. The 23.6-kilometre extension comprises 17 stations, of which seven are overland and ten are underground.
However, four of the proposed underground stations, namely Bang Khun Phrom, Phan Fa, Sam Yot and Saphan Phut, are of concern as they will be located in the Rattanakosin Island area, Kittiphan Phansuwan, former director-general of the department, told the Bangkok Post.
