Detours will be created along a vital stretch of Sukhumvit Road to allow contractors to lay drainage pipes needed for the Central Road bypass tunnel, making already bad traffic worse.
Deputy Mayor Ronakit Ekasingh announced the detours during a May 26 meeting called to address complaints by residents near the construction zone about cars and commercial trucks using their private road as a detour.
The owners of the private land in the construction area have since given their permission to use their property until the construction is done.
Ronakit said from 15-30 June, contractors will lay 1.2 meter drainage pipes along the west side of Sukhumvit Road (Central Road to North Pattaya). Traffic heading towards North Pattaya will be detoured from in front of Pattaya School No. 5 to the East side of Sukhumvit Road (Siam Country Club side) and back to the west side in front of the Index Mall.
Traffic going south will be on the furthest left lane and can go straight as usual.
Detours will be created along a vital stretch of Sukhumvit Road to allow contractors to lay drainage pipes needed for the Central Road bypass tunnel, making already bad traffic worse.
From 1-15 July, the two detour lanes from north to south will be on the west side from Index Mall to the school. Traffic going north will be on the furthest left lane and can go straight as usual.
During this time, and until the end of July, traffic along the railway tracks, Soi Siam Country Club Road, Soi Nernplabwan, So Khao Noi and Soi Khao Talo is expected to worsen, so traffic police from Nongprue, Pattaya and Banglamung will be on duty from 7.00 -10.00 hrs and from 16.00-19.00 hrs to direct traffic during the peak periods.
Traffic signs will be put up to instruct and help motorists.
Slated to last at least three years, the bypass-tunnel construction project already is a source of major traffic congestion and heartburn for central Pattaya drivers, residents and business owners.
Ronakit explained that Sukhumvit had been narrowed so much to allow for construction crews adequate space to work and park their heavy vehicles. Without that space, the work cannot proceed quickly, causing prolonged pain for everyone.
After the pipe laying project is done and just around the end of the year, a meeting will be held to plan the next phase of laying various cables including electric cables on Sukhumvit Road at the same intersection.
