Pattaya Mayor Poramet Ngampichet has held talks with a private monorail operator over a possible mass transit system for the city, as officials continue work on a separate, city-led monorail project already under environmental review.
The meeting took place on September 1 at 1.30pm in Meeting Room 132 at Pattaya City Hall. Trans Asia Futurtec Co., Ltd., a company specialising in monorail systems, presented its technology and operating experience to the mayor as one option for future cooperation.
Wachira Thongdileot, assistant secretary to the mayor, and heads of relevant municipal departments also attended. The presentation was led by Narin Silaprak, chairman of Trans Asia Futurtec, along with his team.
The company said it sees strong potential in Pattaya as a fast-growing, world-class tourist destination. It pointed to persistent traffic congestion and the need for better internal connectivity as reasons the city needs a sustainable transport solution, and offered its monorail system as one possible answer.
Trans Asia Futurtec highlighted several technical features of its system during the briefing. These included a compact elevated guideway with a limited construction footprint, suited to Pattaya’s narrower main roads, and a tight turning radius that allows routes to curve around obstacles and follow existing urban layouts.
The company also said its system runs quietly with a relatively low environmental impact, and uses a straddle-beam design that it says removes the risk of derailment. It added that the technology costs less and pays back faster than heavy rail, takes less time to build, and can run in automated mode.
Poramet said Pattaya has already carried out a feasibility study for a monorail system and prepared an initial design. The city’s aims are to upgrade public transport, cut private car use, improve travel convenience and safety, and support future urban growth.
That existing project is currently going through the environmental impact assessment (EIA) stage.
The mayor said the city welcomed the technical briefing and the exchange of views with Trans Asia Futurtec, calling it one possible avenue for future partnership.
He added that any decision on a specific company would have to wait until the EIA results are in and public hearings, scheduled for this month, are held. After that, an appropriate approach would be prepared for the Cabinet’s consideration.
Pattaya has pursued several monorail proposals in recent years, including a Purple Line project approved in 2024 and a stalled Green Line plan. City Hall’s existing EIA-stage project remains separate from the private proposal discussed in this meeting.
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