EXERCISE

Driven to distraction

Monkey business stops traffic

Traffic on a new road on the outskirts of Bangkok has been coming to a stop recently. A unique spectacle is halting motorists and drawing vendors to an impromptu tourist attraction.

Read this week�s story from the Bangkok Post to find out what all the commotion is about.

Each evening, a number of motorists using the outer ring road pull up at a spot in Bang Khunthian district in the west of Bangkok where they can see and feed a group of monkeys that live in the area. Drawn by the crowds, food vendors also do brisk business at the spot.

The long lines of cars and trucks attract the interest of curious passers-by, who eventually stop as well. Pattamapong Boonsaard, 34, was among the curious motorists who recently gathered to watch the monkeys.

�At first, the long line of cars made me think it was a road accident or a police checkpoint,� he said. �I just checked it out and saw the monkeys.�

Many of the spectators say that it is relaxing to watch and feed the animals.

�A truck driver like me drives a lot every day,� Ekarat Bhokaew said as he threw sweets to the primates. �I have to endure bad traffic, bad drivers and work stress. So the monkeys give me a sense of peace and a look at the beauty of nature.�

But the crowds that gather to watch the monkeys have caused safety concerns. Some road users have phoned a traffic radio programme to air their complaints.

BACK FOR MORE

The danger caused by motorists and vendors on the expressway worries officials at the Expressway and Rapid Transit Authority, but the agency does not currently have jurisdiction over the site.

�The area still belongs to the Highways Department, and we cannot overstep its authority,� ETA official Visut Thipsuk said. �We have to wait until the area is handed over to us. We just don�t know when.�

Currently, the Tha Kham police have authority in the area. From time to time police officers turn up and chase the motorists and stall owners away.

�But we cannot afford to send police to the spot around the clock,� Tha Kham police official Thanit Soicharoen said. �We did arrest and fine vendors, but they keep coming back.�

MONEY MAKER

Some food vendors, meanwhile, say that they will continue to take their chances with both traffic and the police.

�I know this breaks the law, and it is dangerous to sell food at the side of the expressway. But I have to make a living,� one food vendor said. �The price of cooking oil and gasoline is on the rise, and I only make 300 baht on the road down there. Up here, I can make about 1,000 baht a day.�

Exercises

Read the story. Then, answer the following reading comprehension questions.

1. Why can�t the Expressway and Rapid Transit Authority do anything about the problem?

2. Why does Ekarat Bhokaew stop to give food to the monkeys?

3. Why do food vendors choose to sell food on the expressway?

	outskirts (n): the parts of a town or city that are furthest from the centre spectacle (n): a sight or view that is very impressive to look at commotion (n): sudden noisy confusion or excitement brisk (adj): quick; busy primate (n): any animal that belongs to the group of mammals that includes human beings, apes and monkeys endure (v): to experience and deal with something that is painful or unpleasant, especially without complaining jurisdiction (n): the authority that an official organisation has to make legal decisions about something overstep (v): to go beyond what is normal or allowed stall (n): a table or small shop with an open front that people sell things from, especially at a market