Bangkok, a great place to visit, not a great place to live: TFF

BANGKOK, Oct 31 (TNA) -- A study by the Thailand Future Foundation (TFF) has shown that the quality of life of Bangkokians is quite poor in many aspects, which reflected the failings of the management by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), while the foundation is hoping that the govenment would take up the issue as a BMA agenda. TFF Executive Chairman Dr Sethaput Suthiwart-Narueput said Bangkok has been named the best place to visit in the world by international tourists for 4 straight years in a row, but was ranked 102 out of 140 for the best city to live in. He pointed out that this means Bangkok is a great place for a visit, but not a great place to settle down and live in, as the capital city reflects low life quality due to constant failures of the city management team to fix ongoing problems, such as traffic congestion. He said investments have been put into developing the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system, which is only used by 6 million people, comparing to the 29 million passengers of expres boat services along the Chao Phraya River. The TFF executive noted that BMA's measures on public space management are also lacking involvement from the people, as the BMA did not take into account the specific needs of the people in each area. He then stressed that services by city law enforcement authorities must also be improved, as there are about 3,200 personnel per 1,568 square kilometre area in the city, meaning there should be 2 authorities patrolling each area of the capital at most times, but when assistance is needed, none could be access easily. TFF suggested that BMA should become the role model in operating with transparency for other Local Administrative Organisations (LAOs), as the foundation believes the annually allocated budget for the city's developments has not been used to its fullest extent in helping to improve the lives of Bangkokians. It further emphasised that the public must also become more aware of what is going on and about the effects such problems are having on their lives, in order to push the government in taking up the issue as a BMA agenda to solve city problems with sustainability. (TNA)