Some 100 people paraded through Patong Beach in Thailand earlier this week waving signs saying, “We need the tunnel.” The protest came before a public meeting about whether a tunnel should be drilled through Patong Hill to link Patong and Phuket City.
About 500 people gathered for the meeting, part of the THB 40M (USD 1.2M) feasibility study for the tunnel that could cost as much as THB 2.4bn (USD 74M).
The meeting heard six variations of a tunnel route, and that research will take about 20 months, having begun last year. In some of the plans, the tunnel runs for 2km, while the entire route of the project could be as long as 3.25km. Construction would take three years.
The governor of Phuket Wichai Praisangob and Phuket’s regional director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand Bangornrat Shinaprayoon were both in attendance. Mayor of Patong Pian Keesin is a keen supporter of the tunnel and has used it as a major part of his re-election campaign.
Supporters of the tunnel idea say that the current winding route over Patong Hill is too dangerous. Opponents say that a crash in the tunnel could be even more risky.
