R eams of black wiring suspended between poles, haphazardly bundled into nest-like knots, and often hanging at head height are a common sight in Bangkok, which has become almost synonymous with the city. However, following a tweet by actor Russell Crowe , that could be about to change. Bangkok dreaming… pic. The tweet spurred others to share similar images, along with questions as to why they were in such a state. However, given the numerous previous calls for the webs of wires to be moved underground, some are sceptical as to whether this latest push — even one inspired by a Hollywood actor — will change anything.
The fact that no one has died as a result of the wires means it is not at the top of the agenda, Rugkhapan says. Yet people stumble over fallen cables daily, he added. Thus far, a lack of coordination between the various agencies and limited political will has been to blame for the slow progress, Rugkhapan says. The post was deleted after Gates wrongly identified the wires as power lines rather than communication wires. Historically, electrical authorities have blamed the telecommunications industry for the increasing number of lines and messy wires.
Prayuth urged the agencies to speed up the first phase which focused on 39 roads in and around the capital. Progress has been made in certain areas, including on major thoroughfares such as Silom and Sukhumvit, but navigating hazardous wiring is still a part of daily life in much of the city.
Trees are often casualties too, aggressively pruned to make way for the wires, says Oraya Sutabutr, co-founder of Bangkok-based environmental advocacy group Big Trees Project. For example, three years ago when the sky train was being extended around Kasetsart University, instead of moving the utility lines to make way for the construction, workers instead opted to cut all the branches off the trees to make space, causing public upset, Sutabutr says.
The clutter of wiring overhead in Bangkok, Thailand, has been the target of efforts at improvement for some years. This article is more than 3 years old. View image in fullscreen. Explore more on these topics Thailand Russell Crowe features.
