New Thai-Malaysia bridge work in Sungai Kolok district of Narathiwat could start April 2025
Narathiwat governor says construction timeline linked to completion of environmental study
Construction of a new bridge linking Thailand and Malaysia in Sungai Kolok district of Narathiwat could start in April next year, the provincial governor has said.
Trakul Thotham said the start of construction would depend on the completion of the environmental impact assessment (EIA), Bernama news agency reported on Thursday.
He was briefing visiting members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Wednesday in Sungai Kolok. They also visited the site of the present bridge connecting the district with Rantau Panjang in Kelantan state of Malaysia.
The provincial public relations office in Narathiwat reported the trip but made no mention of the construction date, saying only that new bridge would promote economic and tourism activities between the two neighbours.
Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai said last week that the EIA is expected to be completed in September. The government has earmarked 160 million baht for the bridge project.
The new bridge crossing the Kolok River was first approved in 2009 to ease traffic on the existing bridge. It will be erected parallel to the present bridge, with a road surface about twice as large to better handle traffic flows.
The construction cost will be shared equally by the two countries.
In addition to visiting the bridge, OIC representatives toured Yala and Pattani provinces from Tuesday to Thursday.
Source: https://www.bangkokpost.com/thailand/general/2810441/new-thai-malaysia-bridge-work-could-start-next-april
