Songkran revellers returning to Bangkok

BANGKOK, April 16 (TNA) - As most government and private-run offices reopened on April 16, following a five-day Songkran or Traditional Thai New Year vacation nationwide, throngs of celebrants were returning to Bangkok, but a number of them still packed at bus and train stations in upcountry. In Bangkok, crowds of people have been seen at Mo Chit 2 main bus terminal since before dawn, as celebrants started arriving in the capital after visiting and enjoying a reunion with their relatives in upcountry, resulting in insufficient taxis to serve them. The state-run Transport Co., Ltd., thus, arranged mini buses to take them to the main road free of charges so that they could catch taxis parking around the bus station. In the northern Chiang Rai Province, a number of travellers lined a long queue at the provincial bus station, as local officials estimated that more than 12,000 passengers were returning to Bangkok on Thursday. The Transport Co., Ltd. has, thus, provided more than 40 extra inter-provincial buses to serve the passengers, hopefully that all of them should be able to leave the province by mid-night. In the northeastern Khon Kaen Province, more than 20 buses have been added at the provincial bus station to serve passengers heading back to work in Bangkok. A similar picture was seen at railway stations in the lower northern Phichit Province, as people lined in a long queue to receive free train tickets for third class, while more than 10 trains from there to Bangkok have been fully booked until next Sunday, forcing many people to have asked for more days off to have more time to travel back to the capital. Part of people who were unable to buy tickets at Hat Yai railway station in the southern Songkhla Province have postponed their journey until, probably, this weekend. (TNA)