THE Phadung Krung Kasem canal’s electric boat service is being halted from September 3 till October to channel excess water flowing down from the north while a few more tropical storms are also moving into the country, Matichon newspaper said.
Krungthep Thanakom Co., which is the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration’s holding company for investment projects, said the Traffic and Transport Department had issued an alert that it would be necessary to drain excess water into this canal several times during this period which would make navigation difficult.
This boat service starts from Hua Lamphong railway station and runs five kilometres down Phadung Krung Kasem canal to a pier near Thewarat market close to where it joins the Chao Phraya River.
The route is serviced by seven new electric boats and one modified from an existing fleet, each carrying up to 30 passengers.
It was dug in 1851 in order to serve as a new outer moat for the expanding city, extending its boundaries from the Rattanakosin Island to the north and east.
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Electric boats running on Phadung Krung Kasem canal, top, and moored at the canal, Front Page. Photos: Matichon
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