The decision to blockade Pattaya City which went into force on April 9 at 2 p.m. has been lifted, at least until the authorities figure out what to do next.
Yesterday saw one of the worst traffic snarls Pattaya has ever experienced as residents spent hours stuck in their cars waiting to present their papers to the authorities to get permission to enter Pattaya where they live and work. A majority of the people did not even have the necessary papers nor knew what it was about.
The 5 checkpoints were meant to control the flow of people in and out of Pattaya so as to prevent the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19) amongst the residents and tourists.
Having seen that the blockade plan was not going as smoothly as expected, Banglamung District Chief Amnart Charoensri and Pattaya Mayor Sonthaya Khunplome convened an urgent meeting at 7 p.m. last night to discuss the serious matter.
The checkpoints had caused tremendous inconvenience to the people of Pattaya and the surrounding areas causing a huge uproar amongst the citizenry.
To ease the situation, the city fathers decided to lift the blockade with immediate effect.
Authorities will explore methods to thoroughly inform the public about getting the necessary papers for entry and exiting Pattaya City and will rethink and re-plan the best possible locations to setup checkpoints so as not to cause major disruptions to the people’s daily lives.
For further information one can call Pattaya City Contact Center 1337 – 24 hours a day.
