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Pipeline to Mabprachan

Gangsters and crime in Pattaya

Pattaya Beach bus service leaves a lot to be desired

Pipeline to Mabprachan

Dear Ed,
In October 2005 you reported in the Pattaya Mail that city hall had revealed that a pipeline was being constructed from the Bang Pakong River to Mabprachan Reservoir and that work was expected to be completed by end October 2005. You subsequently then made another report in the newspaper that work was proceeding slower than expected and the pipeline would complete within November 2005. After that no further news as focus was taken away because of the late rains. Indeed alongside the Chonburi Motorway pipeline installation could be seen underway at a hectic speed, even without any environmental concerns. This pipeline seemed to progress all the way to Laem Chabang and then mysteriously disappear. In recent weeks no evidence of any continued work can be seen this side of the Bang Pakong River. Meanwhile water levels at Mabprachan are very low bearing in mind this is only mid January. So can you please enlighten myself and your readers on exactly what has happened and if the pipeline was abandoned and/or we are in for another long spell of water shortages this year?
Rgds
Concerned Resident

Gangsters and crime in Pattaya

Hello there!
I was just reading again the web version of Pattaya Mail. I am writing this from Finland and I used to be frequent visitor in Pattaya. As for me it used to be a golfers’ paradise, number one, before it turned into a city of gun toting teenage gangsters, robbers and illegally staying criminals from all over the world. I am still following the news from Pattaya with a hope that law and order will be established there one day. For the news there, Pattaya Mail is quite an entertaining paper.
The reason that inspired me to write to you is that I am very much worried about the development of crime there. And to be honest, I am not the only one who is looking at this situation with increasing worry. Pattaya could be Mecca for golfers, beach lovers, divers, culinary people and all kinds of active holiday makers, but the persons who appreciate peaceful and safe environment, the place is not the right one anymore. Indeed it has drastically deteriorated in the past years, and not that much improvement in this is to be seen. Instead I have started to visit other places in Thailand (like Hua Hin and Cha Am) and other countries in the regions where, at least to my understanding, the crime rate is much lower. Indeed many of my Thai friends and business associates & colleagues who are living in Bangkok (even compared to Bangkok, Pattaya is getting more dangerous) are also avoiding the place because poor security and safety. Particularly in the night time Pattaya and Jomtien have become more and more scary places to move around.
Even looking for the view that Thai Government is trying to take towards reducing crime, nothing much has been achieved in Pattaya particularly. In my opinion the Eastern Seaboard region has an enormous, first class opportunity to develop itself to be sustainably the number one tourist spot in South East Asia (particularly after opening the new Bangkok Airport in Bangna that reduces commuting time from the airport to the Eastern Seaboard). This could be done with orderly and strict crime reduction campaign, sweeping off the violence from the streets, better immigration control and also removing illegal over-staying people.
In addition, I would like to see harsher punishments to those carrying illegal guns and other weapons. In my opinion selling dangerous weapons in the street shops should be restricted too (combat knives, etc.).
In this view, in most countries in Europe or also in some other tourists destinations in South East Asia, for instance in Singapore and Malaysia, safety is at a much better level and all dangerous weapons are under strict control, and (people are) allowed to buy and possess (them) only through narrowly limited licensing. I would really like to see this happening in Thailand and particularly in Pattaya too. (It is perhaps naive to believe that this issue could be removed by stricter punishments and control, but I believe that if these are accompanied by effective public education and government influence in developing other decent opportunities for young people who are prone for to joining into gangs, it will certainly have a fair effect).
In my opinion by reducing crime and violence, Thailand (I see Thailand as marvellous place with wonderful weather, people, services and culture) could create a much more profitable and sustainable tourism business, a tourism that would appreciate more Thai values and culture. And further on, this kind of country would attract more and more first tier, wealthier visitors and also investments.
Yours,
Jake
Finland

Pattaya Beach bus service leaves a lot to be desired

Mail People!
My congratulations to Swiss Flaggy for his highlighting of some of the problems with the woeful Pattaya Beach bus service. After years of promises from city hall, like many longer time residents, I was so glad to see a service actually begin earlier this year. And to my luck the first trial was with the Green line, north through Soi Pohthisan, where I have lived for 10 years. Soi Pohthisan is now a major soi with a major market at the corner of Sai Sam and is hardly serviced by the notorious baht busses at all. When they venture in by demand, they want a fortune to make a drop-off and they are invisible to get out of Pohthisan, leaving residents entirely dependent on the unsafe taxi motorbike crowd.
But after months of trialing, changing and battling, it is too apparent that city hall has chosen people who have not even the slightest idea how to establish and run a local bus service! Only two of the promised routes are going, there is never any idea of a timetable and the drivers have no training and no language skills outside of Issan Thai. They do what they want to when they want to.
So, for example, my driver last week decided to take a lunch break at the Pohthisan market, 200 metres before my stop, and he was very surprised when I objected. Drivers collect from Thais who are not in the company of a farang if they choose and do not if they do not want to. They carry their family around for company and run the bus service much like the baht bus drivers run theirs. In the past week, after months of a regular route if not a regular timetable, the company changed the green bus route to make it at least 10 minutes longer - now taking us way down past Underwater World before turning to come back to Pattaya Tai. I have gone several times now and not seen a single customer get on the bus at any stage of this new extension.
And after trying the reverse Soi Pohthisan route south for about a week, it has been abandoned as apparently has the yellow bus route. And no one can give me the slightest idea of when the service stops at night.
Come on Mayor Niran and city hall. With traffic problems on the top of Pattaya’s problem list, you can certainly find someone to run a bus service who has some clue about how it is done. Busses are hardly a new innovation in Thailand and the current effort is not even close to being good enough.
Signed
Dr Ernie of Soi Pohthisan

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