Phuket Airport will get a ferry pier for travellers into Patong

PHUKET- Many passengers arriving in Phuket heavily complaint about prices they have to fetch to taxi drivers to go into town. And a new bus service which started to commute between the airport and various stops on the way to Phuket city has been fought by taxi drivers who even turned violent to protect a ridiculous monopoly.

Surprisingly, there has been no resistance to the plan of building a passenger jetty at the airport. The project, which will request an investment of THB 240 million (US$ 7.3 million), has been approved by the Central Government. The project will be conducted by the Phuket Marine Office. According to the office management, the project is now undergoing a study on the environment impact. Once completed, planning permission will be sought. No date has been provided for the completion of the facility as it will all depend on how long the Environment Assessment Study will take.

The future pier will help to reduce traffic jam on Phuket’s roads and also help reducing significantly transfer times to town. Currently, crowded roads in Phuket Island means that it takes on average 45 minutes for the 35 km ride to Patong beach or an hour to Karon beach. Ferry services will run according to schedule turning probably into the most popular way to reach Phuket resorts.

The first service is due to run first up to Patong Beach, where many hotels are located and consequently a primary destination for tourists. But more services could be in the longer term be established to other resort areas of Phuket Island and also to neighbouring destinations such as Krabi, Phang Nga, Koh Racha or Phi-Phi Island. The boat ride to Patong will take some 25 minutes…

In between, expansion’s work at Phuket new international terminal continues. The airport is due to be opened by May 2015, boosting capacity from 6.5 to 12.5 million. As the airport reached last year a total passengers number of 11.34 million, up by over 30%, the future facility will not be able to accommodate all the traffic on its opening date. This is the reason why Phuket Airport authorities unveiled the construction of a light terminal “Terminal X” which will be accommodate charter flights. The THB 155 million (US 4.7 million)-Terminal X would have a simple structure modeled on low cost air terminals existing around the world. It will be able to take over another seven to eight million passengers, bringing total capacity to 20 million passengers a year.

Sourced: TravelDailyNews