City Hall has been urged to finalise designs for development of the Gold Line monorail's second phase by the middle of next year as parts of its structure needs to be integrated with the underground extension of the Purple Line.
Deputy permanent secretary for transport Peraphon Thawornsupacharoen said the call was made by the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA), which must reinforce the structural strength of the Purple Line's underground tunnel, as it has to be designed to sustain the foundation of the elevated Gold Line project.
The two lines will overlap for 400 metres, Mr Peraphon said.
He was speaking after he held talks yesterday with Suthon Anakul, deputy director of the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA)'s Traffic and Transportation Department, in addition to representatives from other agencies to follow up on the 2.68km Gold Line project worth 3.84 billion baht.
The MRTA is prepared to forward the Purple Line extension project to the cabinet for approval this month, he said.
The second-phase of the Gold Line project will start from Taksin Hospital to Wat Anongkaram Worawiharn in Klong San district, stretching about 1km. The section will have two stations.
It will expand from the Gold Line's first-phase of development between BTS Krung Thonburi station and Taksin Hospital. This initial 1.7km section will cover three stations.
Mr Peraphon said that the BMA was also asked to propose the Gold Line project to the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning (OTP), which will incorporate the scheme into the second-phase of its master plan for mass transit railway development in Bangkok and its surrounding provinces.
The Gold Line is a feeder project to transport commuters to the main railway systems, he said.
The BMA was also asked to use the same fare structure of the key rail systems along with a common ticketing system.
According to Mr Peraphon, the Gold Line will be linked to the Red Line's Hua Lamphong-Mahachai extension at Klong San station and to the Purple Line's Tao Pun-Rat Burana extension at the Memorial Bridge station. The BMA, he said, was also asked to design and develop the transit points at the stations.
Mr Suthon said the Gold Line's Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is now underway and is expected to be completed next month, adding that construction of the Gold Line's first section is expected to begin early next year and be completed within 16 months.