The Thai Cabinet next month is expected to consider a scaled-down Transport Ministry proposal to add public buses nationwide dedicated to moving the disabled.
Transport Minister Chatchart Sithipan said Jan. 8 that, if approved, 183 new buses would be put into service within nine months.
With assistance from Pattaya’s Redemptorist School for People with Disabilities, the ministry drafted the proposal in November, originally suggesting it would push for 3,000 buses to be added nationwide the for the disabled.
The scaled-back bus program comes as other government agencies are being instructed to increase accessibility for the disabled.
The Marine Department was told to improve access at Sathorn Pier in Bangkok by Jan. 8, while the Airports of Thailand was tasked at improving accessibility at Don Muang International Airport. The Railway of Thailand already has begun installing wheelchair lifts.
