BANGKOK, June 18 (TNA) – The Transport Ministry has assigned the Mass Rapid Transit Authority (MRTA) to check old contracts of electric railways to find ways to reduce their fares.
Chaiwat Thongkhamkhun, permanent secretary for transport, said the movement responded to commuters’ complaints about high fares of electric trains which charged even more than electric railways in more developed countries like Singapore and Britain.
Some coalition parties wanted lower electric train fares to attract more commuters and if the new government had a policy to do so, the Transport Ministry would be ready to deliver, he said.
MRTA would check existing contracts to find the possibility of reducing the fares or offering compensation solutions to train operators. If there is the possibility, the MRTA will start the negotiation with operators, Mr Chaiwat said.
In response to a proposal from a political party for a 15-baht flat fare on the Purple Line electric railway, Mr Chaiwat said that would be possible if the state agreed to cut its revenue share in the railway project while there would not be an impact on its operator. (TNA)
