New tollways planned for Phuket and Samui will solve many of the traffic problems hindering the islands' potential as vacation getaways, according to the chief of the Expressway Authority of Thailand.
Exat governor Surachet Laopoolsuk told CU Radio of Chulalongkorn University on Sunday that the new toll road in Phuket would reduce accidents and traffic gridlock on the tourist island.
The project still needed cabinet approval, which was expected later this year after land issues with government agencies were settled. It was expected open to traffic by 2030.
The 35-kilometre expressway would be built in two stages, the first from Kathu district to Patong beach. The second phase would be from Kathu to Phuket airport.
The existing road, 4029 from Kathu to Patong, goes over a mountain and then descends sharply, with curves, to the beach, and is prone to accidents.
Mr Surachet said the first stage would see a tunnel driven through the mountain and result in a sharp drop in accidents.
The second stage would relieve the traffic congestion on road 402, the main road linking the provincial centre to the airport and the southern mainland.
"Road 402 cannot efficiently absorb traffic, especially during morning and evening rush hours," the Exat chief said.
The second project was the elevated road planned between mainland Surat Thani and Koh Samui. The 30-kilometre bridge over the sea would reduce the long lines of vehicles at ferry ports, and relieve holiday traffic congestion on the island.
The expressway authority has not finalised the location of the mainland bridgehead. Don Sak district in Surat Thani province and Khanom district in Nakhon Si Thammarat are competing for the project and the development it would bring.
Construction of the over-the-sea bridge is planned to start in 2029, with the intended opening in 2034, all pending cabinet approval.