Works to build the road, which will traverse three kilometres connecting the road behind the Klong Kata reservoir in Chalong to 50 Pi Rd in Patong, have already begun, officials announced yesterday (Oct 24).
Diggers and graders provided by the Phuket Provincial Administration Organisation (PPAO) were already on site, clearing and levelling the dirt surface.
Opening the road will be only a temporary measure while the road over Patong Hill remains closed to vehicles, explained Phuket Governor Narong Woonciew during an inspection of the site yesterday.
Joining him were Phuket Vice Governors Pichet Panapong and Amnuay Pinsuwan, PPAO President Rewat Areerob, along with Chalong Mayor Thanaporn Ongsantiphap and Patong Mayor Chalermsak Maneesri
Also on site were officers from the Royal Forest Department under the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE).
The dirt road that used to be a track is currently not usable for regular vehicles, said Mr Rewat.
“At some points soil slides down onto the road. Other parts are marked by ditches caused by erosion. Some sections of the road have very steep gradients,” he explained.
“But when the soil has been leveled and graded, the PPAO will bring mixed rocks to fill and use a compactor for strength and complete it with a smooth road surface,” he said.
“It is a distance of about three kilometers. It will be open for temporary use only until the repairs to the main road to Patong are completed. If there is no rain, we expect to open the road to vehicles in about two weeks,” he added.
The forced closure of the road over Patong Hill made opening the CHalong-Patong road a necessity, Mr Rewat noted.
“If the road remains closed for a long time it will damage the economy of Patong. Therefore, it is necessary to have a backup route,” he said.