Photos courtesy of Bangkok Post
Illegal vendors at Tha Tian and Tha Chang will be targeted next as the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration steps up its plan to keep city pavements tidy.
Read the following story from the Bangkok Post to learn more about this move by the BMA.
BMA adviser and spokeswoman Threedow Aphaiwongs said City Hall would continue its plan to tidy the footpaths in the Rattanakosin area to celebrate HM the King’s birthday on December 5. The next spots to be cleaned up would be the Tha Tian and Tha Chang areas, she said.
The spots will have to be cleared and all stalls need to be removed. The officials had tried to tidy the footpaths there for a long time, but failed, officials said. The current operation should succeed since it’s currently backed by the military, authorities explained.
WORRIED VENDORS
BMA adviser Wichai Sangprapai said about 200 vendors from Khlong Lot have relocated to Tha Chang and Tha Tian. All vendors have been given a leaflet about the BMA’s plan to clear the pavements, he said.
“I don’t know where to go if I am asked to leave,” a fruit vendor said. She and other vendors have been selling at Tha Chang for more than 40 years. The vendor said most illegal vendors were outsiders who took over the footpaths in the evening.
NEW LOCATIONS
The National Council for Peace and Order hopes to return footpaths to pedestrians. Earlier, footpaths near Bo Bae market and in the Ramkhamhaeng area were cleared. Lottery vendors were told at the beginning of July to leave the footpath at Khok Wua intersection on Ratchadamnoen Avenue.
City Hall provided new locations for vendors in four other areas — Chatuchak 2 in Min Buri district, Sanam Luang 2 in Thawi Watthana district, opposite Bon Marche in Chatuchak district and in front of Rat Burana district office.
Exercises
Read the story. Then, decide whether the following statements are true or false.
1. New vendors from Khlong Lot have relocated to Tha Chang and Tha Tian, while old vendors can remain at the same place.
………………….
2. Threedow Aphaiwongs is a Health Ministry official.
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3. BMA stands for Bangkok Metropolis Administration.
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4. Lottery vendors were recently told to leave the footpath at Khok Wua intersection on Ratchadamnoen Avenue.
………………….
Vocabulary
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tidy (v): to make something look neat
back (v): to give help or support to somebody or something
pedestrian (n): a person walking in the streetIdiom
clean sweep: to remove all the people or things that are thought to be unnecessary from an area, organisation, etc.
