The Ratchayothin flyover bridge will be closed on November 22-25 before it is due to be demolished on the following day to make way for the construction of the Morchit-Saphan Mai-Khu Kot section of the Green Line rail track and the underground road beneath the demolished bridge.
On November 22-23, the flyover bridge will be closed to traffic from 10 am to 3 pm and on November 24-25 from 8 am to 5 pm. And at 1 am of November 26, demolishing of the bridge will commence.
To help ease traffic flow in the area which is expected to be heavily congested, Pol Lt-Gen Witthaya Prayongpant, assistant commissioner of Metropolitan Police Bureau, said on Wednesday that the Ratchadapisek road at the Ratchayothin intersection had been expanded to add one more lane for both out-bound and in-bound routes while traffic lights had also been adjusted.
But if traffic congestion does not ease, one-way traffic will be imposed in the area, he said.
Pol Lt-Gen Witthaya admitted that the demolition of the flyover bridge would definitely affect traffic flow in the area because about 200,000 cars use the bridge every day.
However, he said a publicity campaign would be launched to inform motorists about the detour routes to ease the congestion.
Metropolitan Rapid Transit Authority governor Pirayut Singpattanakul said the MRT had already launched a publicity campaign to inform motorists to use five detour routes to avoid being caught in traffic snarl at the construction site.
The five routes are: into Paholyothin Soi 21 to get out via Vibhavadi Soi 30; Into Paholyothin Soi 23 to get out via Vibhavadi Soi 32; into Ratchadapisek Soi 45 to get out via Paholyothin Soi 33; Into Ratchadapisek Soi 48 to get out via Paholyothin Soi 35 and into Paholyothin Soi 30 to get out via Ratchadapisek Soi 30, 32 and 36.
