Skip to main content

Bangkok combats pollution with city toll 

Road pricing is part of Thailand’s Clean Mobility Programme
By Ben Spencer October 1, 2020 Read time: 2 mins
Bangkok toll is expected to reduce emissions (© Chiradech Chotchuang | Dreamstime.com)

Bangkok is introducing a road toll to improve air quality and deter commuters from driving in Thailand’s capital.

A report by German broadcaster DW says the proceeds from the charge will be used to help upgrade public transport. 

The programme is being carried out by the Thai Department for Transport Policy and Planning and German development agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).

GIZ says on its website the Clean Mobility Programme will support the Thai government in enabling a shift toward sustainable transport by addressing low-quality public transport services operating in cities and an increase of private vehicle usage.

It also seeks to help cities improve mobility and manage travel demand in cooperation with relevant authorities, the agency adds. 

This programme is part of Global Transfer III, an initiative carried out by GIZ on behalf of the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Protection, Building and Nuclear Safety.

Transfer III supports efforts being made in Thailand, Peru, the Philippines and Indonesia to reduce greenhouse gases (GHG) from transport. 

According to GIZ, Thailand's government has pledged a 20% reduction in GHG emissions by 2030.

The agency claims a third of these emissions are caused by transport, leading to a rise in air pollution and losses of productivity due to traffic congestion.  

Earlier this year, Toyota Mobility pledged ฿50 million (£1.2m) to Chulalongkorn University as part of a project to ease congestion on Rama4 Road in Bangkok. 
 

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Anywhere card delivers prepaid contactless ticketing
    January 25, 2012
    David Crawford investigates a far reaching initiative in integrated travel. The Port Authority Transit Corporation (PATCO), an operator of high speed commuter rail in the north eastern US, is not one of the world's best known transit providers. Its 13 stations along a single east-west route (three of them interchanges with other regional commuter lines) handle 40,000 passengers a day, travelling to and from Philadelphia, the US' fifth most populous city.
  • Participants in new phase of global road safety initiative selected
    February 13, 2015
    Bloomberg Philanthropies has announced the winning cities and countries selected to participate in a new phase of the foundation's Global Road Safety Initiative, which aims to reduce fatalities and injuries from road traffic crashes. With a new commitment of US $125 million over five years, the program will work at both the national level to strengthen road safety legislation and the city level implementing proven road safety interventions. Twenty invited cities participated in the competition with ten c
  • Dynniq’s FlowSense gives green light for city mobility
    March 19, 2019
    Putting an end to traffic jams – including those involving freight - and improving the air people breathe are major goals for city authorities everywhere. With FlowSense, Dynniq thinks it may have some answers. Adam Hill asks how Sitting in traffic is top of the list of many commuters’ pet hates: a necessary evil, perhaps. But at least it doesn’t kill you - the same can’t be said of toxins in the air. Indeed, the World Health Organisation estimates that 4.2 million deaths worldwide are due to outdoor pol
  • How ITS helped Coachella get its groove back
    November 15, 2024
    California’s Coachella Valley attracts visitors to myriad music and sports events. But now an ambitious traffic management initiative aims to cut travel times and reduce emissions. Adam Hill talks to the engineers involved in the massive CV Sync project