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The Buses of Rangsit.

 
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thaitransit



Age: 42
Joined: 07 Dec 2008
Posts: 40
Location: Mahachai City

PostPosted: Thu Dec 11, 2008 10:23 am    Post subject: The Buses of Rangsit. Reply with quote

Last weekend I went out to Rangsit to photograph the numerous metro and interurban buses and bus routes in the city of Rangsit. This area has a very diverse range of buses and bus styles more so than even in inner city Bangkok.

A Little Background on the city of Rangsit.

Rangsit is located 32km north of Bangkok. It is part of the City of Pathum Thani. However Rangsit is the economic centre of the entire City of Pathum Thani. Rangsit is a major centre for education and research for Thailand. There are 10 universities located within the city of Rangsit.

In addition to the universities it is home to some of Thailand’s most significant industrial estates and high technology industries. A large number of pharmaceutical and cosmetics manufacturers have their plants within the Rangsit area.

The transport system of Rangsit is centered around 4 major roads. These are Phahon Yothin, Viphawadi – Rangsit, Rangsit – Nakhon Nayok and Rangsit – Pathum Thani roads. These 4 major roads form a North – South and East – West set of bus routes.

There is no single bus terminal for urban buses within the Rangsit area. Instead passengers have to transfer by crossing over long foot bridges next to Future park Rangsit shopping centre. This lack of a bus terminal makes for some mighty long walks over a number of footbridges to find the right bus stop for the direction you want to travel.

However even though there is no single bus terminal for all buses there is a couple of small bus terminals located close to SRT’s Rangsit railway station. These terminals service the Pathum Thani buses and Thanyaburi buses. However most people don’t board the buses at the terminals but instead outside on the main roads. More on these terminals in a later post.

There is also a small intercity bus terminal located 2 km north of Future Park Rangsit. This is the only major suburban area of Bangkok that has its own intercity bus terminal. This intercity bus terminal services routes operating to the Issan area of Thailand.

The metro bus services of the Rangsit area mostly operate to sub 10 min headways all day 7 days a week. With some routes operating as often as every 1 minute at peak times. The demand for bus services is very strong in the Rangsit and Pathum Thani areas. Therefore chronic overcrowding does occur throughout the day and even on weekends on some routes.

In terms of passenger information the Rangsit area is by far the worst in all of Bangkok. Unless you know the bus number your after it is very hard to know which bus you want or even where to wait for it due to zero information at the bus stops. If you’re new to the Rangsit area you must ask other passengers in Thai as to which bus goes to your destination.

The buses of Rangsit are the only local mass transport for the entire area of around 1 million people. Around half of the people who live in Rangsit work or study outside the Rangsit area mostly in Bangkok. This puts huge pressure on the roads and bus services heading towards Bangkok. There is a rail service to and from Bangkok operated by SRT but it only plays a small part in the transport task of the Rangsit area.

A number of parts of the Rangsit area are reaching the point where heavy rail metro will be needed to keep the area moving and livable. The issue of metro rail for the Rangsit area is becoming increasing urgent as the population is rapidly growing.

1. This is a shot of a Route 34: Rangsit – Kaset University bus. Bus number unknown. Bus type Merc mini bus. Taken as it was heading towards Bangkok outside Zeer Rangsit.



3. This is a shot of a Route 29: Thammasat University Rangsit – Hualamphong bus. Bus Number 29 – 21. Bus type Golden Dragon. This bus will terminate at Victory Monument. This route is one of the busiest bus routes in the Rangsit area.



15. This is a shot of a Route 381: Rangsit - Ongkharak bus. Bus number unknown. Bus type Merc aircon. Taken looking east in front of the floating market.


17. This is a shot of a Route 1156: Rangsit – Pathum Thani Rajamangala University of Technology bus. Bus number unknown. Bus type: Higer KLQ6920GC. This is yet another type of imported Chinese buses.



25. This is a general view of the fairly small but modern intercity bus terminal at Rangsit. This is the bus departure area. A number of buses can be seen waiting to depart.



27. This is another angle on the Bangkok – Surin 2nd class intercity bus. Taken as it was exiting the terminal. This service is operated by the transport company.



41. This is a shot of a Route 1008 bus. Bus type Dongfeng. Bus number 1008 – 8. Note this bus has electronic destination signs which are very rare in Thailand. In the background is another BMTA Route 510 Hino aircon bus.




42. This is a shot of a Route 39: Thai Market – Victory Monument bus. Bus number BMTA 1 – 66300. Bus type Merc O405. Taken as it was running express down the lower level centre main road.



51. This is a shot of a Route 59 bus. Bus number BMTA 1 – 40092. Bus type Hino. This bus route operates 24 hours a day. Taken as it turns into the Rangsit bus depot.



52. This is an image of a Route 6249: Rangsit – Bang Kadee bus. Bus number 6249 – 5. Bus type unknown. This style of metro bus is rarely seen outside of the Pathum Thani and Nonthaburi areas. What makes them odd is for there age they are rear engine buses.



If you would like to see more images and find out more about the buses of Rangsit then please visit:

http://thaitransit.blogspot.com/2008/12/buses-of-rangsit.html

I hope you find the pictures and vehicles shown to be of interest if you view this please post some comments and feelings about the pictures.
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