BANGKOK, 13 September 2011 -Airport Rail Link will adopt a short term solution to avoid peak hour congestions by adding more trips to its regular time table while the number of users is expected to reach 2 million per day soon.
Deputy Transport Minister Mr. Kittisak Hatasongkroh revealed that the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) was considering the possibility of increasing the frequency by using the express train as an addition to the City Line to decrease train congestion.
The SRT may consider purchasing more trains to solve this problem in the long run. There are currently 4 express trains and 5 normal ones making stop at each station every 15 minutes. They will be arriving 5 minutes sooner in the near future to increase the service capacity to accommodate 2 million passengers per day.
According to Mr. Kittisak, shuttle bus services will be provided to passengers free of charge from hotels in the vicinity of the station. The shuttle bus will be put on trial at Makkasan station first. For those who are hoping that there would be shops inside the Makkasan station, Mr. Kittisak said they would be opened in two months. The Ministry of Transport will confirm the plan again on 21 September 2011.
