But border town near old checkpoint fears a bust as vehicle traffic will drop
Dan Nok has grown from a quiet border village to a bustling town in Sadao district of Songkhla province, as it is located close to a border checkpoint to Malaysia. But local residents are worried about a reduction in vehicle traffic now that the new Sadao checkpoint has opened one kilometre away. (Photo: Bangkok Post)
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is excited about the prospect of more visitors from Malaysia entering Thailand through a new, bigger checkpoint in Sadao district of Songkhla, but residents in the town where the old checkpoint is located don’t feel like celebrating.The tourism agency has welcomed the opening of the new Sadao checkpoint and hopes it will end the gridlock from long lines of Malaysian cars and tour buses, and encourage Malaysians to spend money in southern Thailand.
“The new Sadao road creates an opportunity to transform a border crossing into a regional tourism corridor,” TAT governor Thapanee Kiatphaibool said in a statement released on Monday.
The Thai and Malaysian prime ministers, Anutin Charnvirakul and Anwar Ibrahim, on Friday jointly opened the new Thai checkpoint and a new road to the border.
