Issues & Problems

Over the past few days – “I’m sooo oo busy”, today let me share an urgent news. 6 years of working for public, this is my first time that I have to be in Criminal Court. All the work that we have done can explain itself on how hard we have been working. I can’t talk more details as it will be disrespectful to the court. I would like to invite all of you to hear by yourself, joining the session with us on March 22nd, 2021 by 1PM at Ratchada Criminal Court. All the updates will be under this …

Platform edge doors prevent passengers from falling off the platform edge onto the tracks. In my opinion, it should form a basic feature of all stations. However, while stations on the Gold and Green Lines have this safety component in place, those on the Red Line do not. While this may be due to a different service builder for each of the three lines, it raises the question whether they should all be required to comply with the same standards of the Ministry of Transport, which they are all operating under.

Since Samyan Mitrtown opening we have visited several times. We found many spots where inclined platform elevators are provided. The one linking the mall’s entrance and the MRT system is worth noting in particular. It is attached to a staircase which is as high as a two-storey building, making it totally unsafe.

I do always use BTS or MRT for my daily commute. Today, I arrived at MRT Phetchaburi station in the morning. I went to the ticket counter and before I got into the gate, the security asked me to write down my personal record before enter to the gate. I told the security to do it for me and he actually wrote them then I handed my disability identification card.

On the survey undertaken on 27 November I found that the elevator between the MRT Samyan ticket office floor and the underpass leading to Samyan Mitrtown Mall is exceptionally small. I’m in my 60cm-wide wheelchair and when in the elevator there was hardly any room left. I doubt that an elevator of this size could possibly serve passengers in electric wheelchairs or with double strollers.

The driver is a beautiful woman, came with her friends. Also, one of her friends gets off the car to guide the parking. Caption and photo provided by one of our members yesterday. This space is carefully provided for disability parking, but it is ruined because of your ignorance. This is a social problem, and everyone should cooperate to fix this.

This picture was taken three years ago during my Japan second trip. It was a late afternoon in Kawaguchi and we were heading back to a train station to return to Tokyo. I took this picture from a distance. We can see elementary school students wearing bright yellow hats and with their hands held high as a clear signal to coming vehicles that they want to cross the road.

I have been to Japan twice. One of the amazing things I noticed was that their rivers and canals were clean —I repeat, very clean! I remember waiting on one side of Kawaguchiko Lake to take a photo of Mt.Fuji and seeing waste water running into the lake through gutters from various places, but the water was visibly CLEAR. In many traveling attractions, they even kept fish —- you could see them swimming!!!

Since the spread of COVID-19, wherever we go we see 99% of the general public wear medical or cloth face masks. This is especially true in public transportation systems like the BTS where reminders for the use of face masks are regularly announced resulting in 100% cooperation. The majority have their face masks on correctly but only a few do not.

Our body is susceptible to change. Nothing guarantees that your health today will stay the same tomorrow. ‘Tomorrow you may become a wheelchair user like me’. Imagine yourself in a wheelchair and come across a difference in floor height of just under two inches. I am sure that would cause you trouble.