Bangkok, Thailand

Bangkok, the capital of Thailand Kingdom, in thai called as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon, is the 22nd most populous city in the world. Bangkok province or the areas bounded by the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA), has a registered population nearing 7 million people, and the Bangkok Metropolitan Area.

Which covers five provinces surrounding the capital province in the central region of Thailand registers a little over 10 million. However, like many large cities, the city has seen a great flux of immigrants who are not properly listed in the city's administration. The population is therefore much more realistic in the band of 15-20 million.



An elaborate network of canals known as khlongs gave Bangkok the nickname "Venice of the East" at a time when most transportation was by boat. Today, nearly all of the canals have been filled in and converted into streets. While many khlongs still exist with people living along them and markets often being operated along the banks, most are severely polluted.[7] A notable khlong market is the floating market in Taling Chan district. Through downtown Bangkok runs the Khlong Saen Saeb, which has a canal boat service, the most extensive of which is the Chao Phraya Express Boat with as many as thirty stops along the both banks of the Saen Saeb. However, there are limitations as the further north the route is the farther apart the stations are, impeding the ability of this water taxi to function as a true mass transit system.

Roads

Several elevated highways, newly rebuilt intersections, and many partially finished road and rail projects dot the landscape around greater Bangkok, but have done little to overcome the notorious traffic jams on Bangkok's surface roads as private vehicle usage continues to outstrip infrastructure development. Many city residents complain that they spend more than half their waking day on the streets on an open-air city bus.

Bangkok also includes many shopping and business roads like the Sukhumvit Road which includes highrise business buildings, apartments, and shopping malls, Sukhumvit Road is where many foreigners like to come shopping. The Wireless Road or Thanon Wittayu include the Stock Exchange of Thailand and many business buildings like the All Seasons Place Complex which includes the Conrad Bangkok, a shopping mall, and many other business offices. The Thanon Khaosan or Khaosan Road is also well-known by foreigners. One of the popular shopping roads for teenagers is Rama I road, which has the Siam Paragon, Siam Square, and the Siam Discovery Center.

Bangkok may be known as one of the worst cities in the world for traffic, but it has built an expressway or second-level road on almost every road in the city center, and there continue to be plans for new expressways monthly. The government has also tried many times to improve the state of the traffic in the city center, which can sometimes take an hour just to move one kilometer.[citation needed]

Rail systems

In 1999 an elevated two-line Skytrain (officially called BTS) metro system was opened. The remains of a failed elevated railroad project (the Hopewell project) can still be seen all the way from the main railroad station out towards Don Mueang Airport. Due to the Asian financial crisis of 1997 construction was halted and the concrete pillars were left unused.



The MRT subway system opened for use in July 2004. The MRT connects the northern train station of Bang Sue to the Hua Lamphong central railway station near the city center, while also going through the eastern part of Bangkok. It connects to the BTS system at BTS stations Mo Chit, Asok, and Sala Daeng. Many stations have various designs and concepts with many to install retail shops and transit malls to draw more income from commuters.

source:wikimedia