Phuket’s first urban bus route was launched on May 17 by the local consortium of Phuket companies PKCD, together with the Sustainable Tourism Development Foundation.
The Dragon Line around Phuket Old Town is operated by a 22-seat ‘Smart Bus EV’, an air-conditioned electric bus. The rides are free for both local residents and tourists.
On Friday (May 31), Mr Sorapong arrived from Bangkok to enjoy a free ride round the Old Town as part of a symbolic launch of the service. Joining Mr Sorapong to inaugurate the Dragon Line was Phuket Vice Governor Sattha Thongkham.
Several other VIPs from the public and private sectors joined the event, including Waitha Upatisarang as the Chairman of the Executive Board of PKCD and Bhummikitti Rukteangam as the Chairman of the Sustainable Tourism Development Foundation.
Reporting Mr Sorapong’s visit, the Phuket office of the Department of Public Relations (PR Phuket) reiterated that the launch of the Dragon Line was aimed at tackling both environmental and traffic issues in Phuket.
“Providing such services is a part of the policies aimed at making Thailand reach net zero greenhouse gas emissions, known as the Net Zero policies,” PR Phuket said.
The official report of the event also confirmed the Government’s intention to further develop the use of electric vehicles for public transportation in Phuket.
“This is in line with the guidelines for developing the quality of life of the people [in Phuket]; guidelines for promoting tourism; guidelines for stimulating the economy, and guidelines for protecting the environment in the province,” PR Phuket said.
“The public electric bus service under this project will comply with standards and laws related to public transport. This will create confidence among people and promote safety in traveling,” PR Phuket concluded.
The buses, free for all local residents and tourists, operate along a circular route in Phuket Old Town every 15 minutes, from 11am to 10pm.
The bus route features 16 stops, as follows:
- Opposite Limelight Phuket
- CIMB (CIMB Bank)
- Phuket Terminal 1 (the old bus terminal)
- Royal Phuket City Hotel
- Opposite Pearl Hotel
- Kaset Market (Fresh Market)
- Office Mate
- Ko-Ang Seafood
- Opposite Red Plaza
- Coffee Talk (next to SCB Bank)
- Opposite Krungthai Bank
- Islamic Bank
- Phuket Thaihua Museum
- Dibuk Rd
- Wat Mongkolnimit
- Limelight Phuket
Buses will be parked on Luang Por Rd as their terminus.
Phuket Smart Bus has provided four electric buses to provide the service. Phuket Smart Bus operates a service from Phuket International Airport to Patong to Rawai. The operator has 14 buses in total, which will all be changed to EV buses, it was explained at a press conference before the launch of the project.
“The policy of the Phuket Provincial Development Plan places importance on developing the city to be livable and environmentally friendly. PKCD was established to carry out various projects related to urban development. The Sustainable Tourism Development Foundation was established to carry out various environmentally friendly projects,” Niphon Ekwanich, Chief Advisor to the PKCD Executive Board, explained at the press conference in April.
“Therefore, it was deemed appropriate to jointly prepare a Memorandum of Understanding for cooperation in driving the development of an environmentally friendly city, or ‘Green City’, in order to make development happen in a concrete, flexible, efficient, and sustainable manner,” Mr Niphon added.
Mr Bhummikitti noted at that time that the project was the result of “the problem of traffic congestion and the problem of insufficient parking in Phuket Town.”
“The project provides a travel option for tourists and local residents, and helps them choose to use public transportation, especially by using a clean energy vehicle,” he said.
“This project will use electric buses to reduce air pollution. This will help reduce the problem of carbon dioxide that is caused by air pollution as well and promote and support exchanges and connections between government agencies and the private sector, and related sectors,” Mr Bhummikitti said.