BANGKOK – In his boldest urban renewal proposal to date, Bangkok Governor MR Sukhumbhand Paribatra unveiled plans to build an entirely new city at Skytrain elevation, leaving the old one behind for a prosperous new life in “SkyBangkok.”
“Bangkok is a hopeless quagmire of congestion, filth, and bad planning,” said Sukhumbhand at a press conference today. “So let’s just start over, in the sky. Who’s with me?”
The gleaming new SkyBangkok will feature 188 kilometers of elevated pathways and retail property, green space and clean restrooms. It will follow the existing BTS line as well as its completed and proposed extensions on the Green, Red, and Purple lines, as well as other major city roads. The SkyBangkok project will cost ฿9,280 billion and will be completed by 2022.
In addition to connecting to every BTS station and MRT stations where possible, SkyBangkok will also link to every office building, mall and condominium of six stories or higher.
Access to SkyBangkok will be free and unrestricted to those entering from a connected business or residence. Entrance from the ground level, or “EarthBangkok,” will be conditional upon proper attire, name-brand accessories, white skin or anyone carrying a Paragon or Central shopping bag.
“With SkyBangkok, city residents can finally have the urban life of their dreams,” said Sukhumbhand. “Separated from the filth and complexity of actual city life, and safely segregated from the working class.”
However, Sukhumbhand conceded that EarthBangkok would still be an important part of the city infrastructure, continuing to house the power grid, water pipes and all low-income housing and related services.
Additionally, EarthBangkok would provide a home for the city’s stray dogs and native rat population, and a collection area for monsoon runoff and SkyBangkok’s garbage.
Activities that are deemed inappropriate for SkyBangkok, such as anti-government protests, street food, fresh markets and the Western-tourist sex industry, will also remain on EarthBangkok. Hostess bars aimed at wealthy Thai men will be elevated into SkyBangkok.
Motorized traffic will continue to operate on EarthBangkok until Phase Two of SkyBangkok adds a single lane for VIP vehicles whose owners can afford to pay the ฿5,000 toll. In the meantime, extra-wide Phase One walkways will permit electric cart travel for rich or powerful people who require visible exclusion from normal SkyBangkok residents.
Environmentalists have criticized the plan, noting that with an average width of 26 meters, SkyBangkok areas will completely block out daylight and air circulation from the EarthBangkok streets below, significantly reducing quality of life there and killing all plant life.
Sukhumbhand dismissed these criticisms as missing the big picture.
“The only time you’ll be in EarthBangkok is in your car,” he said. “Just keep the windows closed, the doors locked and your headlights on, and you’ll be fine.”
